dot hack:AIC
by Kevin G. Crowley
Summary: Part two, takes place after Purify so read through it first, the summary is at the end.
1. Chapter 1:Ryo is Coming

Disclaimer:Don't own .hack yadayada you people know the routine. Anyways as it said in the description this is part two another fanfiction I wrote, meaning if you want plot summary thing and what not you have to look at the end of Purify. Okay with that out of the way the first few chapters are kinda short, but later they're longer so no worries. Enjoy.

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"Oh yeah the post about the ghost girl?"a twinblade was saying in a squeaky voice, as they walked around in Water Capital Mac Anu. 

"Yeah I hear she has two swords but she doesn't use them. The BBS says that she usually warps away in a flash of light when someone comes by,"the wavemaster responded, his voice slightly raspy.

"She's been seen in random dungeons. Oh, hi Skyld! Thank you for helping beat that dungeon last week!"the twinblade said as he passed by another player.

The player was wearing black metal armor, with a kind of spherical look at the joints. His hair was brown and in between what one consider short and long. He had a black cape, and wore sunglasses that covered his eyes completely. The player waved back in response. His eyes became wide under the sunglasses and he jumped up.

"It couldn't be, could it?"he said. He logged and went to check the BBS.

"I can't wait for it finally get here! This afternoon it arrives!"Ryo Kuinichi, a 15 year old boy, was saying as he spun around in his chair out of the excitement.

His had dirty blond hair was half combed since he skipped half of his morning routine,but usually it was combed down and just short of getting in front of his eyes, which were a deep blue. Everyone says he's tall for his age but everyone else is taller he says. He's about 5' 6 and although skinny he his stronger then most kids would think.

The chair fell over as he began to spin faster and faster. He rubbed his head getting up, one of his eyes closed in pain. He looked over at the clock. It was 7:45 he had to hurry to school before he was late. He ran over to his dresser and pulled out a pair of socks, he kicked the drawer back in and put on the socks on. He already had on a large black shirt and slightly baggy blue jeans which made up pretty much his entire wardrobe. He looked around his room but couldn't find his shoes. He looked back up at the clock 7:50. He had to be at school by 8:10 and the walk there took 10 minutes at least. He ran out of his room jumping down the stairs.

"Hey brother,"Ryo's little brother said standing in the way.

His name was Hiro Kuinichi. He was only four years old but was smart, he already had quite a large vocabulary and spoke clearly. He had brown curly hair and was plump, unlike Ryo.

"I don't have time, have you seen my shoes?"Ryo asked looking around, in a rush.

Hiro pointed over in the living room to the left of the door. Ryo ran in there and grabbed his shoes. He picked up his backpack from the side of the couch, and began to look through making sure he had everything he needed. He looked at the clock, it was 8:00. His eyes got wide and he ran out the door saying bye to everyone.

His house was a few blocks away from the school, then you had to go around some woods and the school was on the other side. Ryo ran down the blocks and came up to the woods. He began to look around. He couldn't be late, so he ran back then jumped on the fence it was about eight feet high, so he had to climb the rest of the way over. He landed on the other side and began to run through the trees. It was fall so the floor was littered with dead leaves, and the trees themselves weren't so numerous, so Ryo could see the school has he approached it. He got up to the end of the hill that was behind the school, and stopped for a second catching his breath. He looked at his watch, it was now 8:08.

"Aww dammit, gotta hurry,"Ryo said between panting.

He began to run down the hill but tripped a few steps down and ended up rolling down the rest of the way. After getting up from the 20 yard or so roll. He checked the watch again. It was now 8:10 and the last bell began to ring, he darted into the school and inside the halls. _Keep ringing, keep ringing_ he thought to himself. The bell ended and he was half way from his class, he kept running figuring he could sneak in. He tried to stop, but the floors were waxed and he just slid the rest of the way into the lockers. There was a loud thud following and Ryo picked himself up. The locker behind him now had a dent from Ryo's head.

Ryo's teacher then looked out the door and looked at him with a stern face. Her name was Mrs.Lavendeur. She had chestnut brown hair, which she wore in a ponytail, it fell to her mid back. She wore a white button up dress shirt with a long blue skirt, which is what all the female teachers were required to wear. She lowered her glasses, which were just for looks, and stared at him.

"Hello, Mrs.Lavendeur,"Ryo said getting up with a nervous smile. She rolled her eyes.

"Hurry in before someone else comes out,"she said with a sigh.  
Ryo walked in and took his seat in the back corner of the classroom.

"You got lucky,"said the student sitting next to him.

It was his one of his best friends, Suichi Mohi. He was 5'10 and had black hair, which came down to about half way down his ear and was about the same length all around his head. He usually wore a black long sleeve shirt and fingerless gloves. His pants were usually the baggy chain kind, and of course black sneakers. He usually wears a pair of sunglasses with yellow reflective material on the outside. The inside was still like any pair of sunglasses. The class rules don't allow you to wear them over your eyes so he usually wears them on his forehead. Like Ryo he was also very skinny, but was a bit more pale. He also has a school wide famous 'death glare' which was pretty much him looking at you from over the the top of his sunglasses.

Ryo laughed nervously then rested is head on his fist while his elbow was on the armrest. He couldn't focus on the class at all today. He was finally getting "The World", and he kept daydreaming about it. Suichi already had it and said it was the best, he also heard about it from everyone else. It had already been out for a while but only recently caught on around his area.

Ryo began reading into it when he wasn't doing anything else since he ordered it. It was already planned out in his head, he was going to make a heavy blade to go with Suichi's wavemaster. Suichi had already been playing for awhile now and was going to be at a higher level, but Ryo wasn't going to let that stop him.

"Ryo? Ryo Coinchii!"The teacher yelled.

Ryo looked up from his day dreaming.

"It's Kuinichi, not Coinchii, you always get it wrong,"Ryo replied.

The class began laughing. Mrs.Lavendeur pushed her glasses back closer to her face.

"I'll call you by your correct name when you begin to pay attention, now come up here and solve the problem,"she scolded.

Ryo rolled his eyes. It was Geometry and Ryo's best subject was math, even though he never pays attention, math came so natural to him, he gets perfect scores anyways. It was a basic, find the degree of the measure of angle 1-3. He solved it in about a minute which left the class annoyed from his cockiness as usual. He walked back over to his seat and sat back down.

"I can't figure it out, a student who never pays attention can be so good at these things,"Mrs.Lavendeur said aloud by mistake.

Ryo grinned and was rubbing the back of his head. The teacher blushed realizing what she did.

"He only pays attention when you don't want him to,"Suichi followed, getting more laughs from the classroom.

The rest of the day was like the typical routine, she would have the lessons from each subject as the bell rings she would switch. Despite how the class looked it was actually for gifted students, the school was in a shortage of teachers so the few they had taught all the basic subjects.

The bell rang for lunch after the english lesson so Ryo and Suichi went to their usual spot was in the school campus, the school was like a circle with two floors and in the middle you had an outside lunch area, access to the office, the main entrance, and cafeteria. It was mostly stone though in the outside area except for a few areas. Ryo and Suichi went to the spot by the main entrance which was a grassy hill type area. They had a maple tree although it was 'kind of dead' as they often called it, but it still provided some shade. Suichi had put his sunglasses down to his eyes now, and pulled out his lunch and began to eat his sandwich until he looked over at Ryo digging through his backpack.

"Umm, Ryo? Half of your papers are flying away,"Suichi said getting wide eyed now.

Ryo's body was almost half way in his backpack. He came back out, getting teary eyed.

"I forgot my lunch when I ran out of the house this morning,"Ryo said his face returning to normal,"A skinny boy needs his food."

Suichi had a sweat drop going down his head. Then another kid came over holding Ryo's lost papers.

"Oh hey, Dylan thanks,"Ryo said putting the papers back into his backpack, which was organized a moment ago, but was a mess now.

Dylan was the other person that was in their group, he has long hair that falls a bit past his shoulders, he has blue eyes similar to Ryo's. Dylan's full name Dylan Demion. He was 5'8 in between Ryo and Suichi. He was like the other two and mostly wore similar, black cloths. He wore a red shirt with a black button up shirt, which was left unbuttoned, he usually wore what looked dress pants from first glance but was more like a cross between dress pants and black jeans. He wore black shoes to keep to his style. Dylan was the most attractive boy in the school with a bunch of girls usually following him. Ryo usually called them the fan girls. Dylan is the most quiet of the three, and also played "The World" and was a twinblade. He started at about the same time as Suichi.

Suichi and Dylan were eating their lunch which caused a silence. Ryo's mouth began to water but he decided it was better not to take food off his friends. He laid down on the grass and began reading a book, which he had to finish and write a report on for class. A few minutes passed and Suichi began to pull out out his chips. He could see something from the reflection on the side of his sunglasses.

"The fan girls are coming,"Suichi said without looking away from the chips he was now eating.

Dylan sighed and stood up waving to the two. He began to walk away. Ryo looked over as Dylan began to walk away, and as the stampede of girls ran past them Ryo was now sitting up. After he was sure they were gone he took Dylan's lunch and began to eat it, while laughing. Dylan came back when there was 5 minutes left of lunch only to find Ryo had eaten his entire lunch. He glared over at Ryo who was patting his stomach.

"I left you the drink,"Ryo said, actually sounding serious. Dylan remained silent and sat back down. After taking out his drink he threw the black lunch box at Ryo and hit him in the head. Ryo began to rub the bump on his head.

"That thing hurts you know,"Ryo replied. The bell rang shortly afterwards and they threw out their trash. Suichi and Ryo returned to Mrs.Lavendeur's class while Dylan went to his next class. The rest of the day followed with the usual. Ryo would zone out then get yelled by the teacher.

After the last bell had finished Ryo and Suichi walked outside the school.

"So you're getting "The World" today right?"Suichi asked once in the front.

"Yep, it's supposed to be here today,"Ryo said adding a thumbs up.

Dylan was walking over now as he usually did every day. The meeting is usually cut short everyday at this time also because of all the girls screaming and waving at him. The three now stood there until they got overly annoyed from the screaming and just waved to each other and walked away.

Ryo ran inside dropping his backpack off where he always had, next to the couch. Both of his parents worked and his little brother went to a daycare so the house was empty now except for him. He walked back outside and picked the relatively large package sitting outside by the pathway, which he passed by. He brought it inside placing it on the floor in the hallway. He closed the door and began to open the box. He pulled off all the foam protecting and pulled out another box. He walked over placing it on the coffee table in the living room table. He stood for a second and began jump around excited.

On the box was large letters reading "The World". It had a few screen shots of players fighting, walking around town, or other things. He brought it up to the room and began to open it. Inside was a helmet which he knew was for the virtual reality. He also pulled out various CDs and manuals which began to pile up on the bed now. He found the cords needed to hook the helmet up and place it on the bed along with the VR helmet. He started by putting in the first CD which had the installation.

"30 minutes waiting time?"Ryo said in shock. There was never anything he was interested on so he decided to get his homework done. His parents came home shortly afterwards and got on him about how he shouldn't leave the packaging and box from the delivery right in front of the door. He apologized and continued to work on the homework.

After finishing he looked over at the download. It was about to finish in a few seconds. After it finished the CD popped out and it asked for the next one. He put away the first CD and brought out the second one. It was account creation, agreement terms, and more of the 'boring stuff that no one ever bothers to read' Ryo called it. He finished putting in and out all the various CDs it asked for and finally came onto the last one. Everything was away so now he was able to work on his character.

He started by choosing the class, Heavyblade. The next question was gender, he put male. After 15 minutes of answering questions he then got a message asking to type in a description of the character, and they would bring up the closest thing they could. His character had a black button up shirt which was left unbuttoned, showing his stomach, blue pants which became more loose at the bottom, his shoes were black, short, and made of a cloth substance. His hair he wanted to be like in real life so he set that up also. His character also had a black headband which had two ends left falling about 2 feet down. His character was set to be tall. On his face he had a blue streak coming from above his eyes down through the eye lids and onto his cheeks. He looked over the character and was satisfied so he clicked accept. The final question was asking for a name. Ryo typed in his actual name to make it easier. He clicked accept it again but a message popped up. "Name taken, please try another one."

"What do I want for a name?"Ryo asked looking at the roof.

The chair fell back after he tipped over. He began rubbing his head and picking the chair back up. This happened to him a lot when he got excited. He got back onto the keyboard and typed in another name after clicking accept another message popped up. "Congratulations on your new character, Coinchii!". Ryo laughed surprised he'd make of use of that. He took out the disc, and put in the one he would actually play "The World" with. After hooking up the VR helmet, he began to log on.

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Comments, reviews, and whatever else welcome. 


	2. Chapter 2:Online World

And here's chapter two of AIC, as I said the first few chapters tend to be short, but later chapters are better. Anyways enjoy.

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His character, Coinchii, appeared in a town. He began to look around. The town seemed to be built around a canal, and there was a bridge which connected the two halves of the town. The ground was made completely of stones, and the buildings were made of bricks. Behind him was a big ring with a blue transparent water looking substance in it. It kept spinning in a circle. Coinchii put his hand on chin and nodding looking around, he began to name each thing. _This town must be Water Capital Mac Anu, the ring thing behind me is the Chaos Gate_, he began to think. He even named off all the NPC's as he began to walk around. He walked back up towards the Chaos Gate and saw two players standing there. 

The first one was a wave master. He had a black robe and black cloth shoes. He had on what looked like a white vest with a hood on the back. He wore black fingerless gloves. He had a black hat with white gems encrusted in it. He was holding a black staff and at the tip was a white crescent moon with a black sphere between the tips. He had white hair short hair you could see coming from beneath his hat.

The second character was a twinblade. This one wore black long baggy black pants, then a red long sleeve shirt. This one also had what resemble a vest and it was black, but this time there was no hood. He had hair similar to Dylan's. His shoes were also black, and at his sides were two long daggers with a slight curve at the tip.

"That you Dylan and Suichi?"Coinchii asked staring. The twinblade smirked while the wavemaster gave a nod.

"Call us by our in game names though,"Suichi said,"I'm Mohi."he said rubbing the back of his head.

"My character is Demon,"Dylan said, in his slightly deep voice. Coinchii's head drooped and there was a sweat drop.

"So basically all of used our last names,"he said,"I mean I'm Coinchii."

Demon and Mohi began to laugh, finding it funny that the teacher's way of mocking him became his name. Coinchii sighed looking down, then looked up with a perky face. He drew out his sword which was a large rectangular blade. It had a flat end and straight sides.

"So we...change member addresses now right?"Coinchii said recalling the reading he's been doing.

Mohi nodded then the two gave their member addresses to Coinchii while he gave his to those two. Mohi invited him to the party afterwards.

"Okay so in order for you to catch up we should try a dungeon that's kind of easy for us two, as long as you tag along you'll get experience and level up. So if we go to a level 5 dungeon or something for you, just stay with us. You know how to use the Chaos Gate, right?"Mohi asked afterwards.

"Yeah I read into it, so I'm basically sitting to the side while you two fight? That seems easy enough,"Coinchii said scratching his head.

"It's okay you don't have to pretend to understand,"Mohi said with a drooping head and sigh.

Coinchii felt slightly insulted even if Mohi was right. He ran up to the Chaos Gate waiting for his first dungeon.

"Delta, Smiling Passed Over Sea of Sand!"Demon said.

They soon appeared in a desert which had giant fish bones and various sunken ships. Two Goblins came over soon enough, before they could scope out the area. Coinchii pulled out his sword only to have Mohi and Demon jump in front of him with their weapons drawn.

"Hey come on what's the deal?"Coinchii asked trying to see past the two.

"Just stand back for now they'll probably kill you and I don't want to waste Resurrects,"Mohi said as he began to cast a spell.

Demon was up there holding off the two goblins easily while waiting for the spell.

"Ani Rom!"Mohi shouted.

Soon a vortex of darkness came and hit them multiple times killing them, with some of the spell's energy still left to spare.

"Oh I get it,"Coinchii said nodding, as he saw the experience appear around them,"So no matter who fights, the experience is given to everyone in the party, so you guys will be taking care of my lightweight."Coinchii started laughing only to get hit in the head by Mohi.

Coinchii stuck his tounge out, because it couldn't hurt him. Demon walked over and used an attack which created a tornado from his daggers sending Coinchii flying feet away with few hit points left.

"That's for eating my lunch earlier..."he said has he began to use a Fairy Orb,"Let's kill everything out here then walk into the dungeon."

Mohi nodded and Coinchii finally got back over. They began to walk around the field killing the various monsters. They finally came to the last portal. A monster which was 3 magical floating swords appeared.

"Let's let Coinchii try now,"Mohi said, tired of the many references they've been getting about working for him, or other things.

Coinchii grinned and ran over his blade out. He tried to attack but the swords merely divided and came back together dodging his attack. He was hit and knocked down taking some damage. They began to come down at him but he picked up his blade and blocked them.

"You guys can help any time now,"Coinchii said as he knocked them back and stood up.

"Ani Kruz!"Mohi said as he grinned and finished them off in one hit with another spell where skulls converged and collided with the swords.

Coinchii began to wipe the dirt off his cloths although there wasn't any dirt to be seen. He put away his sword and started walking off into the direction of the dungeon.

"Not a word of thanks..."Mohi said now following.

As they approached the dungeon Demon suddenly stopped.

"I have to go, dinner,"Demon said. They gated out and returned back in town. Demon logged off.

"We'll probably have to eat so-"Mohi stopped,"That's Skyld!"Coinchii looked at him confused.

"Who's that?"Coinchii asked.

"Skyld is the best player in "The World", he's a legend."

The two were about to walk over going to say hello, but another character came over. Mohi became even more wide eyed. This character had a long sleeve blue shirt and a maroon vest. He had a maroon headband similar to Coinchii's black one and a long maroon scarf. He wore baggy blue pants, and had a giant sword on his back. The sword looked basic at first, it has a long metal blade, the handle was black but had blue bandages around where one would hold it. The sword had a white triangle like figure going half way up the blade and the tip of the blade curved up meeting the back end. The swords total size was a bit bigger then the player.

"So this some other legendary player?"Coinchii asked after seeing the expression.

Mohi sighed.

"That's AnakinseZ, he's the leader of October,"Mohi explained.

His eyes were shaped like stars now. Coinchii took a step back then looked over.

"That's the kind of player I want to be,"he said.

Mohi looked over and Coinchii was gone. He looked back over and saw him running down the stairs towards the two. He managed to trip into the two knocking them over as he reached the bottom step. He sat up bowing and apologizing.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry. I heard you two were really strong and famous players. Got any tips?"Coinchii asked with a big grin on his face.

Mohi fell over while walking down from hearing that.

"You can't exactly run up to them like that Coinchii..."Mohi said as he got over.

"What is October anyways? Isn't it like the month?"Coinchii asked now standing up looking upwards.

AnakinseZ was rubbing the back of his head nervously while laughing.

"October is the what you could call the police force of "The World". We aren't exactly aggressive but we keep "The World" running smoothly from players, if need be though we can use force,"he answered. Coinchii was nodding up and down fast in excitement.

"Tell me more!"Coinchii said.

"Umm well I suppose it wouldn't hurt to tell you what we're working on now,"he answered rubbing his chin,"There's recently been rumors going around about an AI or player that wasn't authorized so we've been looking for information on this. We haven't gotten much to go on, mostly everyone says the same thing."

"How many people are in October? Is it huge? Do you only accept strong player?"Coinchii was completely absorbed into the legendary heavyblade. AnakinseZ was wide eyed.

"You really seem interested. Well other then me we first have a commander, each commander has five groups and a group consists of a leader and five players. At the moment we have two commanders, nine groups, nine leaders, and 43 players. So the answer to your first question would be...55 people, including me. It's decent I suppose, and we accept anyone but they have to be ready to spend most of their time on "The World" as a member of October instead of a normal player,"AnakinseZ explained.

Coinchii groaned, he wanted to spend time as a normal player and that just killed his hopes of joining October.

"Your friend is interesting..."Skyld said standing next to Mohi.

Mohi looked over and got wide-eyed, he was just staring at Skyld. Skyld moved one foot back and leaned backwards some.

"Skyld actually spoke to me,"Mohi said getting excited.

Skyld and AnakinseZ started to slowly walking away now, as Coinchii and Mohi seemed to be going crazy. After about 5 minutes or so of acting like maniacs they finally stopped and stood up.

"Let's go now, I smell dinner,"Coinchii said. Mohi nodded and the two logged off.

Ryo took off the headset and laid down on the bed.

"My mom will call me any minute now saying dinner is ready,"Ryo said, stretching.

Almost right afterwards his mom called him down for dinner. He grinned about how he was correct then rolled off the bed, instead of catching himself with his feet he slipped and ended up falling. He stood up and began to walk out rubbing the lump now on his head. Ryo walked down the stairs and into the kitchen which was opposite of the living room. He sat down at his usual seat in the corner closest to the window. His dad would sit next to his mom and his brother sits next to him across from their parents. His kitchen was a pretty basic. The dining room area was on the opposite side of the counters, oven, and other things. It was mostly white. The table was an oval shape and the only exit other then hallway was a door leading down to the basement. There was an opening like a window which showed the hallway a bit further down. Ryo sat down to his chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn dinner. He began to eat the chicken first since it was one of his favorite foods. He was about half way done when his mother finished and put her plate in the dishwasher.

"Oh by the way, Ryo that cute girl came over asking for you today,"His mom said closing the dishwasher.

Ryo finished his meal and wiped his mouth off.

"Huh, you mean that crazy chick who stalks me?"Ryo replied.

His mother put her hands on her hips and gave him the face his teacher usually gives him.

"That's no way to talk about her, just because she has the cutest crush on you,"his mom said.

Ryo was blushing now and bringing over his plate to give to his mom.

"Well it is true she's always bothering me, and following me around."

"Just for that comment I'm having you spend the day with her tomorrow."

"That's just torture..."

"Well if you treated Sakura better, then you wouldn't have to do this."

"Ugh..."Ryo was speechless, as he walked up to his room.

He laid down on his bed and stared at his roof. His mom is the only one who ever got on him about his smart alack remarks. He walked over to his computer. He received an message from Suichi on his messenger. It said that he had to do his homework and would be on tomorrow. He replied saying he was stuck spending the day with Sakura.

Sakura was the type of girl who would bug you and flirt shamelessly with you every chance she got. Her full name was Sakura Ominari. She was slightly shorter then Ryo and had long blond hair, slightly lighter then Ryo's. She wears japanese school outfits, with the white button up shirt and blue scarf, tie thing. She had the blue skirt and brown shoes with the buckle as well. She always had a big red bow on the back of her hair.

After sighing he got ready for bed it was early, but he figured he'd need the rest.

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Reviews and what not welcome. I'm particularly interested in whether or not people enjoyed Skyld and AnakinseZ's appearance (Not that it really matters at this point, but meh, still curious). 


	3. Chapter 3:Sakura Day

Ugh, the text editor which I use for the author notes are buggy, so bare with me, please. The name Sakura is anime raped, I know, but I had trouble thinking of a name, and it does seem to fit well later once you get used to it, soes yeah. So heres chapter three, enjoy.

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Ryo was laying down on his bed his mouth was open and he was drooling over his pillow. The alarm clock began to go off, and his face had a disturbed look. He sat up and turned off the alarm. He wiped his eyes and felt something slimy on his cheek. He looked around and walked downstairs, and walked down the hallway around the bottom then into the bathroom which was the first door on the left past the kitchen. He splashed water on his face and wiped it off along with the drool. Hiro was knocking on the door about going to the bathroom as Ryo was looking at his hair. It was a mess and sticking up in random places. He grabbed a comb and walked out letting his brother get in. He combed his hair as he walked upstairs and got some cloths. He got another of his black shirts and blue jeans. Sakura would probably be over soon so he decided to get his socks and shoes with him when he went to the shower. His brother was out of the bathroom and inside the kitchen eating a bowl of cereal, it was more like making a mess though. Ryo walked in the bathroom and began to take a shower.

He got out now fully awake, since they ran out of hot water some how, so his shower was cold. He got out of the shower and dried off then. He put on his cloths and re-combed his hair. After putting on his socks and shoes, he walked up to his room, going to get his wallet. He picked it up then began to walk back down stairs. Sakura wasn't here yet so he went into the living room and sat down.

"I want you to be nice to her on your little date now,"His mom said.

Ryo began to blush looking away.

"It's not a date. A date is when the two people like each other and they decide to go out on their own. Not when their parents set it up."

"I know you like her, don't deny it Ryo."

"What kind of response is that from a mom?"

"A mom who knows what's going on."she replied.

Ryo was now beat red. He knew where his smart alack remarks often came from. He liked how his mom acted younger without sounding old but sometimes it would get on his nerves, like now. They heard the doorbell ring, and the two got up and went to check it out.

"Hello Mrs.Kuinichi! Hi-hi Ryo!"Sakura was half singing as his mom opened the door.

She usually acted polite around his parents. Sakura was now dragging Ryo away as he tried to claw his way back. His mom was standing in the door way with a smile, waving at them.

They soon reached the park and Ryo was walking around while Sakura was wrapped around him most of the time. They sat down on a bench which faced into the lake. Sakura was staring at Ryo with big affectionate eyes. He knew that this meant she would jump on him and begin to talk to him afterwards. Like clockwork she glomped him a few seconds afterwards.

"So Ryo where are you going to take me?"she said in a slightly sexy-ish voice, still holding onto him.

There was a sweat drop as he was thinking he didn't always have to be right when he did that. He looked upwards and began to wonder what he would do till he could go home later. Sakura was now nuzzling his arm, causing him to blush red.

"Stop holding onto me like that, what if someone sees?"Ryo shouted shouted trying to push her head away.

"It's okay Ryo, they'll just see the love we have for each other!"she replied

"What love? Your always mess around with me!"

"Don't deny it you know you have feelings for me!"

"I have feelings for you but they aren't good ones,"Ryo said with an aggravated smile.

Suichi and Dylan were watching from inside a nearby tree.

"I told you this would be interesting,"Suichi said laughing at Ryo who was struggling and Sakura who was torturing him.

"This saves me from the fan girls so I'm fine with it,"Dylan said resting his feet on a branch while laying back.

Suichi looked at him for a second then crawled further out onto the branch. The branch began to snap and Suichi fell into the water. Dylan was looking over wide eyed.

"Did you see something?"Ryo said pushing back on Sakura's head.

She stopped and looked around. After blinking a few times she sat down normal again. Ryo was getting suspicious now.

"I got an idea! How about we go to the library,"Sakura said looking at Ryo with a gleeful face.

Ryo was curious as to why she wanted to go there, but saw no harm so they were on their way.

Suichi finally came out of the lake soaking wet and gasping for air. Dylan was half way down the tree now, and they noticed Ryo was about to look back over. Dylan jumped back up into the tree, and Suichi ran behind it. Ryo looked forward again but was soon glomped again by Sakura. He tried to push her off but accidentally hit her breasts.

"Oh Ryo! I didn't know you were that way!"she practically screamed to everyone in the park.

"I'm not that way, you are so perverted!"he argued.

They continued walking away. Suichi and Dylan sighed in relief and came out of hiding. Dylan looked over and noticed a fish tail in the Suichi's pocket. Suichi pulled it out and it jumped out of his hands. It hit him in the face as it jumped into the water. Dylan was smirking at this sight.

"Where are they going?"Suichi asked shaking himself dry.

"The library she said."Dylan replied.

They began to follow them jumping behind tree to tree. The library was just across the street from the second entrance to the park. It was a large three story building, with the first two floors with books then the third floor had lots of computer, but you needed a special pass. Ryo hardly ever went to the public library but remembered hearing about having to check out so many books, or being introduced by someone with one to get the pass. They walked inside through the wooden doors with the glass circle window. Sakura walked over to the librarian and showed her something. The librarian gave her something and she ran back over to Ryo who was looking at all the books. As she came over she held out something in her hands. Ryo just stared blankly.

"Here take it let's go to the third floor now,"she said still holding it out.

Ryo took it scratching his head. He was wondering what she was doing. She grabbed his arm and began to lead him upstairs. Suichi and Dylan entered shortly afterwards.

"We don't have a pass,"Dylan said when they watched Ryo and Sakura walk upstairs.

"Follow my lead first go start asking some questions,"Suichi said nudging his heads towards the librarian.

Dylan looked at Suichi with a sweat drop but decided to play along. He walked over and began to ask the librarian about the type of books, meanwhile Suichi was crawling on the other side of the desk sneaking behind the counter. He found a small stack of yellow squares of paper, it had writing that said computer pass so Suichi grabbed two of them and slipped back.

"This is my computer you can use that one,"she said walking over to one of the computers by the corner.

"You play "The World"?"Ryo asked surprised they had something in common. She giggled at the comment.

"You got it recently also didn't you? I remember hearing it about yesterday leaving school."

"How did you happen to hear that,"Ryo asked looking over from the corner of his eye.

"My secret,"she said as she winked and blew a kiss to Ryo, causing him to turn red,"anyways come on let's play."

They put on the VR helmets and logged on. Suichi and Dylan walked in shortly afterwards finding them. The quickly turned around.

"She plays the game?"Suichi asked. Dylan shrugged.

They sat down by two unused computer blocked by a wall. They logged on to continue the spying.

Coinchii appeared in Mac Anu. He looked over and saw a revealing wavemaster female. She wore a white skirt which had a sort of cape in the back going lower. She had a small what looked like a strip of a shirt going across her breasts. She had tall white boots and long blond hair. She had white gloves which went half way up her arm, and her staff looked kind of futuristic.

"I can see your stomach!"she shouted as she started poking Coinchii in the stomach that was exposed.

Coinchii was blushing, but he couldn't find himself turning away.

"So how do you like my character?"she asked as she posed for him.

His eyes widened his face became more red. He tried to talk but had trouble.

"Wow..."Mohi said in shock upon seeing Sakura's character, even Demon was blushing.

They turned around from the corner they were sitting at.

"That's...unique,"Demon said trying to think of something.

Mohi began to laugh.

"Let's see what Coinchii does now,"He said peering around the corner.

"Okay now let's trade member addresses, oh and my character is Miryo,"she said hugging Coinchii, who was still stunned and not moving.

They traded member addresses and formed a party.

"You're pretty high for just starting the other day,"Miryo said with a smile.

"I had help...Will you stop smiling so much?"Coinchii replied.

"Okay so right now you'll have to block the monsters so I can cast, lets go to a dungeon so you can level,"Miryo said humming.

"By any chance, is your name supposed to be 'my Ryo'?"Coinchii asked with a sweat drop.

She turned around and glomped him with a kiss.

"Yep! Now let's go to a dungeon!"she said waving her staff up,"Delta Smiling Agonizing Aqua Field!"

They soon warped into the field.

"Right in front of a dungeon, how lucky,"Coinchii said pulling out his weapon. Miryo was rocking her head back and forth humming. They finally walked in once she stopped. Demon and Mohi had given up trying to guess the keywords and were now out training elsewhere.

They came up into the first room. Coinchii pulled out a Fairy Orb. They walked into the next room and a chain fence slammed down blocking the exit. Coinchii let out a yelp from the surprise.

"Oh Coinchii that was so cuuute!"Miryo said huggling him.

He blushed and pushed away. They looked over at the portal on the opposite side of the room. They walked over and it vanished.

"A giant moth and a goblin, that's easy."Miryo said spinning her staff around. Coinchii walked over slashing at the goblin, knocking it back. The giant moth flew over and Coinchii brought his sword to block it. After blocking the first attack, the moth used an attack which released a powder.

"I can't move he put me to sleep."Coinchii said trying to move his body.

"Rai Kruz!"Miryo shouted, causing electric balls to converge on the moth killing it quickly.

The goblin ran over slashing at Coinchii was just now overcoming the affects of sleep. It managed a follow up attack on Ryo before he had recovered from sleep. Miryo cast another Rai Kruz to kill the goblin.

"Repth!"Miryo shouted after the battle.

Coinchii's hp was now back up.

"What was that?"he asked afterwards.

"Repth recovers hp."

"That's useful."

"What abilities do you have anyways Coinchii?"

"Umm not sure. I didn't know I had any,"Coinchii said scratching his head.

Miryo laughed hugging him again.

"You're so cute when you're clueless."

"I told you to stop that!"he responded pushing out of her grip. They continued fighting while Coinchii gained a few levels they eventually reached the Gott Statue.

"Hey that's the Goth Statue!"he said pointing to the chest in front of a floating statue. Miryo starting nuzzling against him.

"Gott statue you mean."

"I knew that..."Coinchii said blushing walking over to it, he opened it up.

He obtained another sword. This looked the one he already had only the edge was more jagged and had a black mark going along the side of it. He switched it with his old sword and they stood up.

"It's about time we get going, it feels likes it's getting late."Miryo said using a Sprite Ocarina.

They appeared in the field and gated out further into the town.

They both logged out and took off their VR helmets in real life. Ryo sighed in relief. He checked his watch it was about 3:00. He stood up and was glomped by Sakura in an instant.

"Will you stop hanging on me already?"Ryo said trying to walk away. Sakura giggled as she saw him blushing. They began to walk towards the door.

"Hey, you always hang out with those two,"Sakura said pointing to Suichi and Dylan who were still playing.

Ryo had a sweat drop and decided to ignore them. He decided to be nice and walked Sakura home. They came up to the door and Ryo waved then started to walk away.

"Get back here you still owe me,"Sakura said in a cute voice. Ryo turned around puzzled and found Sakura kissing him on the lips. She giggled then ran inside.

"She's crazy..."he said putting his hands in his pockets and walking home.

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Reviews and ect. welcome, a thnkas out to Aerora for her review on chapter two. School has started recently, so in advance if the updates come slowly. Even if the updates are slow, I won't abandon the story, so yeah.


	4. Chapter 4:Grunties!

Hmm...for some reason the dividing bar doesn't like me...Anyways it's been awhile since the last update, I've gotten quite a few hits, and AIC is starting to get towards the bottom of the page so time to update. And in advance sorry, but it's a grunty chapter. I gotta have 'em somewhere afterall. Enjoy.

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"Grunties?" Ryo asked hanging upside down from the tree at lunch.

It was Monday yet again, they managed make some progress yesterday, until Miryo, or Sakura, found them.

"Yeah, you know the pig cow things. Mines almost fully an adult and I'll be able to ride him in the fields when I get the grunty flute,"Suichi explained, Ryo still looking at him clueless,"It'll be easier to show you later..."

"Get out of that tree!"a teacher shouted at Ryo, causing him to slip and fall out.

He sat up mumbling about something and rubbing the bump on his head.

"Now explain this again. Grunties are like the pets of "The World"?" Ryo asked between the bites of one of the rice balls his mom made.

Dylan was sleeping on the ground, tired from the P.E. class he just endured.

"This is the fourth time you've asked..."Suichi said, a vein pulsing out of his head now.

Ryo just finished off his last rice ball and turned his lunch box over expecting food to come out. A few crumbs fell out, as Ryo gave up.

"Maybe so, but I'm curious the other times you didn't explain to well,"Ryo responded, not even noticing Suichi had already walked away.

He looked up, having put his lunch box away, he blinked a few times at the absence of Suichi.

"Finally he's ours!"a girl shrieked out of nowhere.

Ryo saw a crowd of girls charging his way. He looked over at Dylan who was still sleeping. The girls arrived creating a cloud of dust. Ryo was coughing, and as it faded Dylan was gone, the grass still held the shape of of someone sleeping there. Ryo watched as a tumbleweed rolled by, not a real one but in his head he saw one. There was a creepy silence as he sat there by himself.

"It feels like I'm forgetting something...Did I do my spanish homework?"Ryo said gathering his belongings and walking away.

He didn't even question what was happening to Suichi and Dylan. He looked as his watch, there was still 15 minutes left. He scratched his head wondering if Suichi went to class early. The class was on the other side of the school from where they sit at lunch. Ryo was walking by the office when he heard someone call his name. Shivers ran up his spine and he froze up, it was Sakura. He decided he would keep walking, he didn't hear her he told himself. Before he could take a step Sakura jumped on his back hugging him. Everyone in the office meeting looked over at the window wide eyed upon seeing this.

"I finally found where you sit!"she said yet to return to the ground.

"You two you aren't supposed to do that on school premises,"They heard a deep voice coming from behind them.

They turned around with faces as though they had seen a ghost. It was the principal, he usually wore a brown tuxedo and yellow tie, with a white undershirt. His hair, well really it was a wig, was neatly combed off to the side.

"I'm not doing anything, it's all her fault,"Ryo said looking at the ground.

The principal was now pulling on Sakura, who was holding on to Ryo which was caused Ryo to get dragged also. Ryo looked over and grabbed the pole of one the lights, as he slid by. They finally broke apart, all three with X's in their eyes. Ryo stood up and ran away leaving a small cloud of dust. The principal got up in a few seconds and saw his wig laying on the ground. Sakura turned around and tried her hardest not laugh. Her face was beginning to change colors from holding it in. The principal put his wig on, clearing his throat and walking away. Sakura fell on the ground when he left, she was holding her sides laughing, and rolling around on the floor. The bell rang and the day resumed doing the work in the classroom.

10 minutes before the bell was to ring dismissing them Mrs.Lavendeur allowed the class to do whatever.

"Explain to me about grunties now,"Ryo said begging Suichi. Suichi was drawing something on a sheet of loose leaf paper.

"Last time, I'll answer,"Suichi said with a vein pulsing out again,"You get food from the fields and feed it to your grunty as it requests it. The more you feed it, the larger it gets until it becomes an adult. When it does you can get a flute from the gruntie's collar and ride it around in fields. Once it becomes an adult though you no longer have to feed it. Do you under stand this time?"

"Are they all the same?"Ryo replied, finally getting concept of the grunty system.

"They usually evolve on the player taking care of them, or if you feed it a special combination of food, you'll get a special grunty."

"I want one, they sound like fun,"Ryo said putting his backpack on.

There were only a few minutes left.

"I need one more type of food to finish raising it. After the homework we can get it and you can began to raise your own."

The bell began to ring while Suichi and Ryo further talked about the grunties. They did the routine meeting after the bell also then went home.

Ryo walked into his house and took a deep breath. He placed his backpack by the couch in the living room and walked upstairs to his room. He decided to do his homework later, he wanted to get a head start on the grunty. He took off his socks and shoes and walked over to his computer. He started up the Altimit System. He looked over and found he had two new e-mails. He opened them up.

"Heyyyyyyyy, Ryo let's a dungeon together later 3. Meet me after dinner in Mac Anu, I found a good dungeon for us. Bai. 3,"the message said, it from Sakura. He scrolled down and opened the next message.

"This Saturday, we'll be holding an event for everyone with a grunty. It'll be gruntyback(horseback) combat, it's testing for a new system we might add to "The World" so we've sent e-mails to every player, requesting them to come. There will of course be prizes, a rare weapon of your class for the grand champion, and special limited edition grunty models for the top 4 combatants," Ryo went wide-eyed and did a back flip out of his chair. He began to flail his arms and ran around the room rambling on about how he was get that weapon and special grunty. He jumped back into his chair and started up "The World". There was a new post on the BBS and Ryo decided to check it. It was a huge thread of comments about the grunty competition.

"Talking never gets anything done,"Ryo said has he put on the VR helmet and logged on.

Coinchii appeared in town and turned around to the Chaos Gate.

"No fair I planned on finishing my grunty first,"Coinchii heard a voice from behind.

He turned around and saw Mohi standing there. Coinchii laughed and rubbed the back of his head, then sent a party invite to Mohi.

"Okay let's go to a dungeon."Coinchii said.

"One thing,"Mohi said looking around,"The food I need is in a high level dungeon."

"So, you're strong enough aren't you?"

"Not that strong. Let's go but we have to avoid the monsters,"Mohi said walking up to the Chaos Gate,"Delta Ignorant Oblivious Mountain Top!"

The two warped into a field. It was a mountain area like the last keyword. The path itself wasn't defined so well but there was enough room so you wouldn't fall off. There were clouds over the edge and the dungeon would probably be at the top they figured. It was brown and rocky at where they were standing and up higher they had snow falling, and covering the ground.

"Let's get that grunty food before we get killed,"Mohi said pulling out his staff walking up the path. Coinchii pulled out his weapon and followed. After about five minutes of traversing the mountain paths he stopped for a second. Mohi looked back. They began to hear a faint voice saying 'Twilight Onion'.

"That's what I need! Where's it coming from?"Mohi asked looking around.

"Up there,"Coinchii replied pointing up at a cliff.

The Twilight Onion was sitting on a small ledge on the mountain. Mohi put away his staff and began to climb up. After climbing about 20 feet up, he began to see the snow.

"You're about half way there now! Remember don't look down!"he could hear Coinchii saying from the ground.

"You idiot, that makes everyone realize how high they are and they look down anyways!"Mohi replied. He continued climbing up. Luckily Mohi had no fear of heights.

He finally got up to the ledge with the Twilight Onion and grabbed it. He sat on the ledge and waved down at Coinchii over his success while Coinchii was now sitting against a rock waiting for him to finish. He put the Twilight Onion away and stood up ready to climb down, but the ledge gave way and fell apart. Mohi hit the ground with a hard thud and cracked the ground he landed on. He got up and ran over by Coinchii in time as the landing spot fell down also. He poked Coinchii with his staff to wake him up. As he woke up and saw three large scorpions running down the cliff. He rolled over and pulled out his sword pointing them out to Mohi. The two began to walk back.

"Ani Zot!"he shouted and large claws came out of the side of the cliff.

A shield appeared around the monsters and words appeared on the screen.

"What's Dark Tol?"Coinchii asked backing up.

"They're immune to darkness,"Mohi said backing up as well.

"Now grunty!"They heard a voice yell behind.

They turned around and saw someone on a grunty jump over them. It was Skyld on a grunty covered in armor."Stand back he said stepping off his grunty. He pulled out a long sword, with a black and white line entwining up to the tip of the blade. Mohi and Coinchii began to stare mouth opened and eyes wide. The path was narrow from the collapse caused by Mohi falling, Skyld was able to fight them one on one although it really wasn't needed. The first scorpion thrusted his stinger towards Skyld but he stepped to the side and cut off the end. The monster stepped back in pain and Skyld jumped on top stabbing the monster deep into its back. The monster faded and Skyld landed onto the ground. The other two scorpions turned around trying to retreat. Skyld ran over and jumped back on his grunty.

"Grunty, show us the meaning of haste!"Skyld shouted and his grunty ran over towards the cliff.

It stopped then jumped straight up, the grunty jumped about 15 feet high allowing Skyld to slash and knock off one scorpion. The grunty planted it's feet on the cliff and began to run up. The two then caught up with last scorpion. Skyld pulled out a scroll that began to let off a green light.

"Gan Zot!"he shouted.

Trees came flying out of the ground doing impressive damage to the scorpion while knocking it down. It blew away into dust before it even hit the ground. Coinchii and Mohi were now cheering as Skyld landed in front of them upon on his grunty.

"That grunty is awesome! What did you feed it? Can I get one? What's the highest it can jump? Can all grunties do that?"Coinchii began bombarding Skyld with a questions.

This time Mohi was also asking several questions without taking a breath.

"That was awesome! I can't believe you saved us. What are you doing here? Can I have your member address?"he began asking.

They were slowly scooting towards Skyld asking several more questions. He began scratching is head not even knowing where to start from the two asking so many questions. He cleared his throat which caused them go silent instantly.

"Umm, your welcome, I fed it what it wanted, I was training for the event next week, It depends on how your grunty is raised, Sure I'll give you two my member address, it can jump about 25 feet high with a running start, and if you train your grunty it can,"Skyld ended the answering with a sigh.

Skyld traded member addresses with Coinchii and Mohi who were acting like idiots from the excitement.

"Umm just calm down now,"Skyld said shaking his head. Coinchii and Mohi began to laugh.

"Sorry, it's just your like the best player in "The World", it's hard not to be excited,"Mohi said.

Skyld sighed.

"Don't think of me as a legendary player. Just Skyld,"he said rubbing the back of his head,"Anyways I got to go continue training, are you two okay or do you want me to help?"

"Umm, we were just getting a Twilight Onion for my grunty,"

"I'm making a grunty soon though,"Coinchii replied.

Skyld pulled out a big bag. Coinchii's eyes became huge. He placed it down and got back on his grunty.

"That should work for you guys, I'm off to practice. Now off grunty!"Skyld shouted and his grunty obeyed as they rode off fast.

Coinchii and Mohi looked at each other then opened the bag.

"Wow there's so much grunty food here, and of every kind,"Mohi said digging through it,"He even has a bunch of Twilight Onions."

Coinchii took the bag almost falling over in the process. They nodded at each other and returned to town.

"Coinchii!"they hard a voice as soon as they appeared in town. He looked over and saw Miryo, and began blushing like usual. She glomped Coinchii and began nuzzling him.

"Will you get off me? Stop doing that around people!"Coinchii yelled wiggling out of her grip.

"So you're the kind that likes it in private?"Miryo said with a smirk on her face.

"No! I didn't mean it like that!"

"Oh you two are in a party invite me!"she responded raising her staff up.

Mohi and Miryo traded member addresses and Coinchii invited her.

"Now we have to go to the Theta server, or Dun Lorieg,"Mohi said turning back towards the Chaos Gate,"Server Theta!"  
The three appeared in town which was on a mountain, the paths were connected by bridges and they could see the top of the clouds. Except for the few floating windmills you could stand in the middle and see most of the shops. They stepped off the stone platform the Chaos Gate was in and began walk further in.

"The grunties are over this way,"Mohi said leading.

Miryo was walking right next Coinchii and her character kept attracting attention.

"Dirty perverts,"Coinchii said under is breath.

"Hmm, I wouldn't mind you being like them,"She said starting to nuzzle him again.

"That's not even something a human does!"he shouted.

The two paused and everyone was looking now. After a moment of silence everyone turned back to their own business and the three continued walking over another wooden, plank bridge. They came up to a building with a fence around it and a few grunties walking around inside the fence.

"Those are grunties?"Coinchii asked his eyes getting wide. Mohi nodded and Coinchii ran over and jumped into the fence. A decent size grunty walked over.

"That's my grunty,"Mohi said beaming with pride.

The grunty was completely black except for a white spot on his forehead. It's collar was all black with spikes and there was a little tag like skull. It's tail was short with a little bush of hair at the end.

"Hey there, Smoke,"Mohi said walking inside the right way followed by Miryo.

The grunty ran over with it's little tail wagging.

"Twilight Onion!"it replied.

It licked Mohi happy to see him. Mohi pulled the Twilight Onion out of his pocket and fed it to the grunty. Smoke then grew larger instantly. Mohi smiled petting him and grabbing a small object next the skull. The tail was wagging and it stood up on it's hind legs for a few seconds. Miryo finally walked over after looking at all the grunties.

"It's so cute! Almost as cute as Coinchii,"she said almost singing.

She began to pet Smoke and he seemed to be enjoying it. Coinchii walked over to an NPC.

"So are you the grunty farmer?"he asked.

The NPC replied catching Coinchii off guard.

"What would you like to do?"he asked.

"Umm, raise a grunty?"Coinchii replied not knowing what to say. He looked down at the ground and a little baby grunty appeared sniffing Coinchii's foot. He bent down and began to pet it. The grunty jumped up and knocked him over licking him in the face.

"I want something sweet,"It said in a squeaky little voice.

"What should I feed it?"Coinchii asked.

"Try this,"Mohi replied pulling something out of the bag. Coinchii fed it to the grunty and it got really happy.

"How long do I have to feed it till it becomes a full grown grunty?"

"We can make it grown up now."Miryo answered.

They spent the next 30 or so minutes figuring out and feeding the grunty what it wanted. Finally it became a full grown adult.

"I think I'll call him...Yakeshi,"Coinchii said.

The grunty was relatively large. It was completely black all over except the yellow markings along it. It looked like a circle on top of the the intersection of a cross. The tag was a plastic version of the markings on it's body.

"Congratulations, you've made a Twilight Grunty," they heard the NPC say.

Coinchii took the mini flute by the tag and put it away. He began to jump around in excitement. Miryo jumped over and began to dance with him taking advantage of this opportunity.

"I can't wait for you to give me a ride when we're all alone,"Miryo said in her sexy voice.

Coinchii stopped instantly.

"Will you stop thinking perverted stuff already..."Coinchii said blushing. Miryo glomped him again and began to kiss him."People will see stop it!"Mohi was rolling around laughing until he decided to save Coinchii.

"Let's go try the grunty flutes," he said walking back towards the Chaos Gate. They stopped off to save first, then reached the Chaos Gate.

"Theta Bursting Passed Over Aqua Field!"Coinchii shouted knowing it was the weakest dungeon.

They appeared in the dungeon and pulled out their flutes, after playing it they heard flute steps and their grunties had shown up. Miryo jumped on and rode with Coinchii against his will.

"Okay let's try the gruntyback combat,"Miryo said spinning her staff around, while their grunties were running around.

They ran over to a portal and it faded away, three Giant Moths and a Mad Grass appeared. Mohi had Smoke run back some as he began to cast. Miryo started holding onto Coinchii tightly making him unable to focus.

"Ani Kruz!"Mohi shouted.

Skulls converged on the Mad Grass killing it. Miryo took one of her hands off Coinchii and began to cast a spell on the two Giant Moths following them.

"Rai Don!" she shouted.

Electricity appeared from the sky and killed the two monsters. Yakeshi ran over to the last moth where Coinchii slashed at it twice as they passed, reducing it's hp greatly. Yakeshi turned around and went back at the monster one more, it tried to attack but Yakeshi jumped over while Coinchii held his sword out getting a third attack and killing it.

"Let's go try the dungeon,"Coinchii said ignoring Miryo who was still holding on closely two him, her breasts tightly pushed against him, on purpose.

"You can't ride grunties into the dungeon only outside on the field,"Mohi said.

He used a Fairy Orb and they continued to eliminate all the portals. They had to leave shortly afterwards, it was late and they'd been on playing all day.

After saying their byes they logged out and Ryo took off his VR helmet. He yawned and looked at the clock. It was 10:48, he walked over and laid down on the bed not even bothering to change at this point. He fell asleep almost instantly.

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Reviews and what not welcome, I'm still unsure of whether or not I'll have the grunties play any major roles later on in the story. As you can see there was an event which means there's a chapter or two with 'em. Anyways since this story is still in progress in the reviews you can feel free through in a suggestion or two and I'll see what I can do.


	5. Chapter 5:Thieves

Sorry I have a few apologies. Firstly, sorry for the gap in posting, I don't think I've updated it recently, and also sorry about how it's slowly getting into the plot. When I was writing it just felt more natural to have the story progress at a normal pace. In Purify it felt like the plot was rushed and that's probably why prefer this one more. The last apology is for the fact there's nothing happening on "The World" in this chapter. This chapter is more light-hearted, and isn't really important, but I hope it provides some enjoyment none-the-less.Anyways enough of me, enjoy.

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Ryo awoke to the sound of the alarm clock. He sat up, rubbing his eyes. After yawning he turned off the alarm clock.

"...What's that smell?"Ryo asked looking around.

He sniffed himself and there was a revolting smell coming from his cloths. His face began to turn green, so he held is nose when he got more cloths and walked downstairs.

"Good morning Ryo, breakfast will be ready soon,"his mom said as he walked by the hallway window.

He nodded, still holding his nose, and walked in to take a shower.

After taking the shower he got dressed and combed is hair. He walked into the kitchen and was greeted by a plate with an overly cheesy omelette. He also had two slices of toast covered in jelly, and a cup of milk. He stretched and yawned as he began to eat the breakfast. He felt like he was forgetting something.

"So Ryo I need a favor, since I made you breakfast,"his mom said as he finished the meal. Ryo suddenly remembered, with a sweat drop, his mom only makes him breakfast when she needs something."I need you to stop off at the store and pick up a few things, get your brother from the daycare since your dad will be working late, and I'm expecting a package in the mail, if you could get it."

Ryo groaned but had no choice but to agree. He put on his socks and shoes, had his backpack ready, and made his lunch. Everything was ready so he began to walk to school.

It was the usual sort of day as the bell rang releasing them to lunch. Suichi and Ryo were at the spot first as and were sitting down to eat lunch.

"So what kind of grunty is a Twilight Grunty anyways?"Ryo asked, looking for the drink he put in this morning. Suichi shrugged.

"Well there still has yet to be a report of two of the same rare kinds of grunties, so I have no idea. Usually rare ones have a special ability,"Suichi answered.

Ryo was was eating his lunch after finding his Sprite and looked up interested.

"They've had one that was said to be able to find rare items, and there was another one reported as giving the owner experience," Suichi continued.

"Hey,"Dylan said as he began to sit down.

"Where were you yesterday anyways, I didn't see you on "The World", You have a drug deal or something?"Ryo asked jokingly.

"Of course,"Dylan replied sarcastically, although he sucked at sarcasm because he was always so serious.

The other two looked over believing him. They gulped and tried to ignore it. Ryo began to look upwards, picturing what could have happened. He saw Dylan standing there with a large bag, then someone else in the shadows. The guy in the shadows kicked the suitcase over, and Dylan bent down checking it. He put the bag down taking the suitcase and walking away. Then three ninjas jumped in and threw shurikans at Dylan who began to do the matrix.

"Ryo!"he heard a voice saying, which interrupted his daydreaming.

He blinked and looked over at Suichi.

"Wasn't me,"he replied putting his lunch box back into his backpack.

Ryo was glomped from behind, it was Sakura. Ryo picked his head back up only to have his face covered in peanut butter and jelly. He glared over at Sakura who was sitting down whistling innocently. He sighed and wiped his face clean.

"Why were you just daydreaming about me doing the matrix after a drug deal?"Dylan asked looking over towards Ryo.

Ryo had a surprised looked on his face and a nervous sweat drop.

"You saw that? It was in my mind, how?"Ryo asked in a small and nervous voice.

Dylan sighed.

"You were talking aloud..."Suichi answered.

Ryo began to scratch to his head while laughing nervously. Sakura was sitting down eating her lunch now, content and leaving Ryo alone for the moment.

"So anyways, I have stuff to do after school so I might not get on till after dinner,"Ryo said, Suichi looked over puzzled,"Umm, a few chores for my mother."

"She tricked you with breakfast again?"Dylan asked laying down against the tree in his usual spot.

"Of course not, no one tricks me,"Ryo bluffed, laughing nervously which gave it away,"Amazing no fan girls yet."

Dylan let out a small 'heh' in response to Ryo's comment. The three looked over at him curious as to what was going through his head.

"I can't believe I get five dollars for doing this,"a computer nerd said, running down the halls,"so many girls chasing me."

He had on a wig which was sort of like Dylan's hair, and the same cloths Dylan wears only a different size. He took a left and ran down the halls into a dead end. The fan girls stopped upon seeing him.

"What have you done with Dylan?"they asked in a shadowy figure with a red background. Their teeth looked sharp from his angle. Dylan then walked past the hallway humming to himself as he went to lunch. There was a big ruckus going on then a loud scream followed by silence. Dylan just ignored it.

He came back to the present and looked over at the three staring at him clueless.

"Right...anyways, maybe we can help with the chores,"Suichi offered.

"First, I need to go to the store, then I need to get my little brother. The last thing I needed to do was get a package, and bring it in,"Ryo replied.

"Let's go along then, I wanted to check your computer. They made something new for "The World" you might like so I wanted to see if your computer was compatible,"Suichi said.

"Sounds like fun,"Dylan said, with Ryo and Sakura agreeing.

Ryo looked over at Sakura with a smile on her face. Seems she was part of the group now.

School ended so they decided meet up by the entrance. All four were standing there now Sakura was nuzzling Ryo again, who was ignoring her.

"The fan girls are late, or at least not here,"Ryo said looking around. Dylan let out another chuckle.

A kid from their school was was going to the janitor's closet going to get a mop for the art class. He began to open the door when something pulled him. Two girls walked by and they heard a sound coming from the door. There was a silence and the door creaked open. The girls began to take a step forward to find the door slam close. More screaming came from the closet,followed again by the silence silence. Someone ran out of the closet fast leaving a trail of smoke. At the end of the smoke trail was Dylan who was now walking away and humming as he heard 'There's Dylan!' coming from down the hall. He chuckled having successfully found another decoy.

"Dylan? You there?"Ryo asked as Dylan seemed to have spaced out.

Dylan looked over.

"Let's go, first we should pick up your brother,"Dylan said beginning to walk away with his hands in his pockets.

The three looked at each other puzzled then began to follow him.

They arrived at the daycare, where his brother was at and walked in.

"Oh hello, can I help you four?" a cheery looking lady asked sitting over in a chair. She wore a yellow turtle neck sweater, and red sweat pants. She was between chubby and skinny you would say, and she had dark brown hair pulled up into a bun, and she wore circular glasses. Her name was Mrs.Kizyoki, and she was the 'daycare mother' she called herself in front of the kids.

"Hello Mrs.Kizyoki,"Ryo said walking in.

"That you Ryo? I suppose you're here to pick up your brother?"she asked in a calm and nice sounding tone.

Ryo nodded and they walked over to the play area.

"Brother!"Hiro said turning away from the red truck he was playing with.

Sakura picked him up and began to hug him saying how cute he was. They waved to Mrs.Kizyoki as they walked outside.

"What now, take him to the store?"Suichi asked.

"Mom gave me the money so I guess so."Ryo asked.

At that moment two people slightly larger then the four high school students walked by knocking them over. Ryo sat up rubbing the bump on his head from hitting the sidewalk.

"You don't want to lose this,"Sakura said handing Ryo his wallet.

He began to look through finding no money. Their eyes became wide as they realized they were pick-pocketed.

"Sakura you take Hiro home, let's go catch them," Ryo said running away.

The three looked at each other then down to Hiro was smiling and counting his fingers. Sakura nodded with a determined look on her face.

"I'll impress Ryo by doing this great task!"She said holding up her fist.

Suichi and Dylan fell then ran after Ryo.

"Sister Sakura!"Hiro said.

Sakura smiled then began to carry Hiro home.

Ryo was running past the river when the two thieves stopped and jumped over the railing. He ran over and looked over the edge as Suichi and Dylan finally caught up. Ryo was about to jump off also until Suichi and Dylan caught him.

"Running after them isn't gonna work, they'll just keep running also,"Suichi said holding on to Ryo who was hanging off the edge,"That and they jumped over the edge by the bank not in the middle of the river."

Ryo had his arms folded and was looking out the side of his eyes. They struggled but manage to pull Ryo over onto the bridge.

"Think, where is the one place along the river they could go?"Dylan asked looking at the two.

A flashbulb appeared above Ryo's head, in his mind anyways.

"There's the abandoned factory,"Ryo said putting his fist in palm.

They ran to the other side of the bridge, then down to the bank of the river.

"See here are footprints in the mud,"Dylan said.

"Are you some kind of detective or something on the side, most kids our age would just run after them..."Ryo replied.

There was a sweat drop on Dylan's head.

"It's called common sense..."Dylan responded.

They walked along the bank following the footprints.

After about 30 minutes or so they came up to the old factory. Ryo ran up to the door and found it busted open.

"Dylan was right,"Ryo said as he pushed it open.

Dylan smirked. They walked inside and looked around the room.

"There's no other exit then the door,"Suichi said looking around the empty room.

There was dust everywhere and the only thing in there was what looked like an old generator.

"Look again,"Dylan said leaning against the wall next to a vent shaft by the floor.

Ryo realized Dylan was right when there were trails in the dust on the ground. Ryo gave Dylan a thumbs up with a grin, then crawled in. They came up one spot with a vent opening half way in. There was a light shining up so Ryo crawled over and poked his head over the opening see what was going on.

"That was the first kid to chase after us,"said one voice, kind of deep.

"Good thing no one can find this factory, we've gotten at least 500 dollars from this."said a second voice which was then followed by laughing.

Ryo jumped down out and into the room, scaring the two people who fell over in their chairs. Suichi jumped down then Dylan came down afterwards.

"You actually found us?"The first person asked getting up.

They dressed like the typical bumbling robber Black cloths and a black hockey mask. The second one stood up he was slightly taller then the first one. Suichi began cracking his knuckles and Ryo looked over surprised.

"You can actually fight?"he asked.

"You don't have to sound surprised,"Suichi replied looking at Ryo from the corner of his eyes with a sweat drop.

The first one came over, and picked up Ryo who was flailing around uselessly. Suichi ran over and punched him, but it did nothing.

"I thought you said you could fight!"Ryo yelled.

"Haven't you heard of a bluff?"Suichi said backing up.

"This was easy and to think we were worried,"the taller one said.

He walked over and picked up Suichi and Dylan. Dylan raised his arms and slid out of his over shirt. The thief dropped Suichi and grabbed for Dylan who countered by grabbing his hand and throwing him over his back. Suichi and Ryo, who was still hanging from his shirt, stared over wide eyed. Dylan walked over and picked up his shirt putting it back on. The second one dropped Ryo and walked over towards Dylan, he was tripped by Suichi half way. Ryo walked over and grabbed his money.

"Wait how do we get out?"he asked.

All three had a sweat drop as they forgot they wouldn't be able to climb up once they jumped down. The two thieves stood back up.

"You two are really getting boring now,"Suichi said looking over his sunglasses.

The two weren't affected by the 'death glare'. Ryo looked over with a sweat drop.

"What was that supposed to do?"he asked.

Suichi laughed and shrugged. Dylan sighed.

"Allow me..."he said as he pulled out a cellphone from his pocket.

The thieves were even watching, curious now. The ringing stopped.

"Hey, I'm in the old factory by the river, don't make me wait long, I feel so lonely." he said into his cell phone.

He closed it, put it back onto the clip, and re-adjusted his over shirt to cover it again.

"What the hell..."The taller thief responded clueless.

The shorter one shrugged in response. Soon the room began to shake and the fan girls burst through the stone wall. They ran over the bandits and halted just before Dylan. Ryo was looking at the wall, there was about 30 feet of ground, now forming a hole. There was more rumbling and Ryo looked back to find another hole.

"That was different..."Suichi said cluelessly.

"At least he went in a good way."Ryo said putting his arms around his head walking out of the factory."Let's go shopping for the stuff now."

"You can really be heartless..."Suichi sighed following.

They soon came upon the store. Ryo pulled out the list and looked it over.

"We need milk, eggs, sugar, kool-aid, cheese, cake mix, and vegetable oil,"Ryo said handing Suichi half the list.

Suichi sighed as Ryo walked away to do his half. They finished the shopping early when Ryo got them kicked out by looking through the cereal boxes with the prizes.

"Why were you doing that?"Suichi yelled.

"At least we got the stuff for free,"Ryo said holding up the bags.

"That's not the point!"Suichi shouted shaking his head.

He looked up and Ryo was already walking home. Suichi began to walk home tired.

Ryo dragged himself inside putting the groceries on the counter in the kitchen, then walked up to his room. He yawned and laid down on the bed.

"Hello Ryo,"Sakura sang from next to him. Ryo looked over from the corner of his eyes then rolled over. _I'm just tired_ he thought. He shortly drifted off into sleep.

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Reviews, comments, ideas, all that is welcome. I'll try to update sooner next time, but in the least the chapters get longer so hopefully they keep you tied over. Also, as I've said before this story is being written so if you see anything you want to see more of, or dislike something, or want to suggest something, leave it in a review.


	6. Chapter 6:Elite Rogue Squadron

Figured it was time for an update, the view count has been doing better than Purify at this point if I'm correct, but then again I suppose it's because it's carrying readers. Anyways, Purify has also been gaining hits steadily. Anyways, time for some actual story progression. Enjoy.

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"I don't want to get up this morning..."Ryo said as he woke up.

He sat up and walked over to his dresser to get some cloths for today. He stared blankly half asleep at the dresser. He pulled out his cloths eventually and put them on the bed. He looked over and saw Sakura still asleep. His eyes became wide as he soon noticed the only thing she was wearing was a large white t-shirt. He gulped, taking his cloths, and slowly walked out of the room.

"I'm just really tired. That's all it was, right. You aren't going crazy Ryo,"He said to himself walking downstairs.

He tried to reassure himself that Sakura wasn't there. His eye stopped twitching as he reached the bottom of the stair case.

"So did you have fun with your little sleep over?"his mom asked as he turned around the staircase.

Ryo stopped dead, with a sweat drop, then walked backwards into the kitchen.

"You mean you let Sakura sleep in my room?"Ryo yelled in shock.

"Yes she asked so nicely and since she did your chores while you were clowning around, I couldn't refuse."

"What? She's a girl, I'm a boy, you aren't supposed to trust us!"

"Nonsense I trust both of you, besides,"she said slicing down into the sandwich for Hiro's lunch."if you tried anything you would be in so much trouble."

"I feel unsafe talking to you...with a knife in hand..."Ryo said wide eyed inching away.

He got outside the kitchen and darted for the shower.

"That felt so much better,"Ryo said as he left the shower.

He opened the door and was about to throw his laundry into his basket. He took a step forward and saw Sakura undressing.

"Good morning Ryo, enjoy your shower?"Sakura asked.  
Ryo immediately slammed the door shut.

"How could she just change openly in my room like that?"he asked no one wide eyed sitting with his back on the door,"This house is trying to torture me."

Ryo was wiping his eyes mumbling about how he would have to just repress the memory. He walked into the kitchen and began to prepare his lunch. Opening the refrigerator he began to wonder what he should get. He grabbed out a bottle of Sprite as he does everyday and put it into his lunch box.

"Show them my motto,"Ryo mumbled imitating the commercial.

He found nothing else he felt like eating then began to go through the cabinets. He found a bag of chips and threw them in the lunch box. He hummed as he continued to go through the cabinets finding food. He finally assembled his lunch and checked the time.

"7:30, wow I'm ahead of my time today,"he said as he finished getting everything ready.

He looked up and began to wonder where Sakura's stuff was, not that it mattered to him. He decided he would check if it was safe to re-enter his room, since he had 20 minutes before he would leave he could probably do something productive like make his bed, he thought. He came up to his door and knocked. After waiting a minute or so there no reply so he figured she left and walked in. He sighed in relief upon seeing no Sakura. He took two steps in the room and slipped over Sakura's night shirt.

"Who leaves their cloths on the ground?"he complained sitting up rubbing the bump on his head.

"I do,"a voice said from behind.

The door began to creak revealing a hidden spot where he didn't see. Sakura was standing there in his cloths.

"You wear boxers,"she sang and giggled.

Ryo turned red.

"What are you doing in my cloths?"he shouted pointing at wide eyed at Sakura.

"Is anything wrong honey?"his mom asked from downstairs.

"No everything's fine!"he replied running over and closing the door."Get out of my cloths..."

"Aww, but you have the most comfortable cloths. Why don't you wear mine?"Sakura replied humming and checking out the stolen cloths on herself.

"I'm not even responding to that question,"he said with his eyes glaring over at Sakura.

"I don't have any cloths so unless you want me walking around naked, I have to wear yours. I'm fine either way,"she said in a sexy voice.

Shivers ran up Ryo's back.

"I'm not perverted...Fine then wear those,"Ryo replied in a huff and walked back downstairs.

Sakura picked up her backpack and followed. She arrived downstairs humming while rocking her head back and forth. As Ryo walked out Sakura followed.

"They're just so cute,"Ryo's mom said as she put the lunch box in Hiro's backpack,"Let's go to see Mrs.Kizyoki now."

"Cute,"Hiro replied in his little kid voice mimicking their mom.

"Bye Ryo! Thank you for letting sleep in your bed, and walking me to school!"she shouted walking to her class as they reached school.

Ryo began to blush when he was walking to class. He forced himself to ignore all the giggling coming from the girls as he walked down the hall. He slid open the door and closed it as he walked into class.

"Ryo Coinchii is actually early to class?"Mrs.Lavendeur said as he walked over to his seat.

"It's Kuinichi already. Ku-i-ni-chi,"Ryo replied sitting down now.

"I like Coinchii better,"Ryo fell over at hearing this comment.

He sighed and pulled out his math book. Suichi walked in shortly afterwards. He waved to Mrs.Lavendeur and ran over to his seat.

"Tell me the rumors aren't true,"he said turning to Ryo.

"They aren't true,"Ryo said bluntly,"Now what are the rumors?"

A sweat drop fell down Suichi's head.

"Everyones saying all kinds of things about you and Sakura now,"

"What? Is she trying to drive my crazy? She's such a pain in the-"Ryo was shouting with a vein pulsing till he was stopped.

"Why did you stop?"Suichi asked wide-eyed.

"Censoring, although I don't really see the point. Most people reading this story should have already heard these words."

"Yeah, that's true, but we shouldn't know this should we?"

"Nah, not really. Anyways I was saying, nothing happened, she invited herself into my house without me knowing."

"Also, she has cloths like yours."

"She took my cloths saying she didn't have any,"Ryo replied with a sigh.

The bell began to ring as all the students filed into their seats. Most of the girls were giggling while a few guys gave Ryo a thumbs up. He hid his face behind his math book wanting this day to be over.

The bell finally rang releasing them to lunch and they walked over to their spot.

"I'm never gonna live this down am I?"Ryo asked pulling out his lunch box.

"You want an honest opinion or a comforting opinion?"Suichi replied, pulling out his lunch as well.

"Never mind then,"Ryo replied with his head drooping and a sweat drop. They waved as Dylan began to sit down.

"So you and Sakura are finally dating? I thought you couldn't stand her,"Dylan said pulling out his lunch now.

"What? I'm not going out with her what the hell has she been saying?"Ryo screamed flailing his arms around. He stopped as someone grabbed his neck.

"Sakura, will you get off of me?"Ryo shouted not looking back.

"Aww,"Sakura replied sitting down,"I'm sorry I didn't mean to start all these rumors."

.She was sitting down making a circle in the dirt with he finger.

"Am I supposed to forgive you?"Ryo replied a vein pulsing from his head.

"Yay! You forgive me!"Sakura replied glomping him.

"No I didn't! You heard what you wanted to hear!"Ryo replied pushing her off.

He sighed and returned to eating his lunch.

"Oh hey, by the way, there's a rumor going around about a rare item in a dungeon after school let's check it out,"Suichi said.

"Someone will probably have it by then,"Ryo replied taking out the Sprite and bag of chips.

"Well there's a monster that no ones said to be able to defeat. They say that if you defeat it you'll get a title."

"Oh yeah! I heard about that! It's like your name then The Treasure Hunter,"Sakura said.

"If someone high level can't kill this monster then I doubt we can. I mean we aren't exactly the strongest players,"Dylan said.

"You're too negative, but one problem though how will we do it since there is four of us,"Sakura answered, eating some of her sushi she packed in her lunch box.

"Well that's true but I was thinking, we could break into two parties. Since both of us are wavemasters, then the Ryo and Dylan are like the-"Suichi was interrupted.

"The decoys, wow I feel important,"Ryo said.

Dylan nodded putting his finished lunch away.

"If this monster is as strong as the rumors are saying then Sakura and I will probably run out of SP before it's dead, so you'll be doing the damage while we recover our SP,"Suichi said.

"Do we have the dungeon name?"Ryo asked, finishing his lunch now as well.

"Yep the BBS is so useful,"Suichi replied, finishing off his drink.

"It's Theta Oblivious Slaughtered Twin Devil, I think,"Sakura said biting on her chopsticks since she finished her sushi.

"That sounds cheery,"Ryo replied wide eyed,"So when should we meet then?"

"It's Friday today so we shouldn't have homework, log on as soon as you can once you get home,"Suichi said. Everyone nodded.

"Now to "The World","Ryo said dropping his backpack by the couch as he got home later that day.

He walked up stairs and went to his computer. He started up the Altimit System, and found three e-mails. The first one was from CC Corp, the second was from the leader of October, AnakinseZ, and the last one was from Suichi. He opened the first one.

"Join the contest! We will be holding a raffle contest and the 100 chosen players will a free plushie made like a character of their choice in "The World" the date to submit and entry ends the day of the gruntyback combat contest. And the first 10 to win will receive a plushie of the Skyld, the Master Knight. No restrictions, submit an entry now!"Ryo had a sweat drop, but getting a plushie of himself didn't sound so bad, and having a mini version of Skyld sounded cool also. He replied to the e-mail and submitted an entry. He opened the next e-mail now.

"You've been chosen to participate in a trial of what may soon be a new branch of October. Gifted new players are being given the chance to join October as elite force. Unlike a normal members, you will be allowed to freely roam "The World" as a normal player with a few exceptions. The first being you cannot brake any rules with the power of your newly granted position, two being if called upon for a task you must obey and follow the given orders, and the last one you must stop any rule breakers as you come by them on your travels. A deeper and further explanation will be given at the initiation if you choose to accept I will reply with the needed information soon."Ryo got wide-eyed and eagerly replied accepting. He whistled as he looked at his last e-mail.

"Hey I checked the BBS the treasure is still there so hurry and log on!"Ryo closed the e-mail and logged onto the world.

Coinchii appeared in town to find the other three already there. He laughed nervously rubbing the back of his head. Mohi and Demon sighed. They then formed their parties, Demon and Mohi in one, while Coinchii and Miryo in the other.

"Theta Oblivious Slaughtered Twin Devil!"Coinchii and Mohi shouted they warped away and appeared in a field.

The land looked it was set into flames the earth was covered in ashes the tree were completely black, and they were on a hill. They looked over and saw a small crypt looking building.

"That's probably the dungeon,"Coinchii said he called his grunty.

Mohi followed and they soon were speeding down the hill towards the dungeon. As they approached it a monster burst out of the ground knocking them all over. They got up and sent the grunties away. A hand as big as a door was there sticking out of the ground, the monster pushed itself out further and revealed itself. It was a large demi-human looking monster, at least 20 feet tall while it was hunched over. It had brown fur around it's wrists, ankles, and waist which covered his blood red and rough skin. On its head were two large yellow horns. It had claws which looked very sharp

"Is this the monster everyone was talking about? I've never seen a name like this one,"Coinchii said pulling out his sword and deflecting the claw attack the monster had used.

"I think it is," Demon said slashing at the monster's ankle only to get knocked away.

He landed about five feet back and lost quite a lot of hp from that one attack. Coinchii stepped back with a message now of all times. It was from AnakinseZ telling him the time and the map the initiation would be held at. The monster managed to get Coinchii with one of the claws when he was off guard.

"La Repth!"Miryo shouted healing the two damaged fighters.

"Ani Kruz!"Mohi shouted only to have the skulls do little damage.

"Physical attacks don't work and the magic isn't cutting it,"Demon said, ducking down and dodging another attack.

"Use this!"Miryo said throwing a staff over Mohi,"It's a darkness staff and it's more powerful then what you're using. La Repth!"

Mohi caught the staff, the handle was similar to the one he had but the end had two snakes wrapped around each other then a dark orb by their mouth. He quickly looked over his spells, he had all of the same ones but two of them were now a level up.

"Me Ani Kruz!"Mohi shouted pointing the tip towards the monster. This time the attack worked and the monster was knocked back a few steps. You could see the damage, it was doing as well.

"That worked keep it up, once it's dead you'll have that title, and fame!"Coinchii shouted knocking back another attack.

"Me Ani Kruz! Me Ani Kruz!"

Mohi kept casting the spell and soon the monster fell down,becoming gray and then it faded away. They began to cheer having defeated the monster.

"So where's my title?"Mohi asked checking his screen.

"Maybe we need to get the treasure,"Coinchii said, he looked over at nothing,"I gotta go to the meeting!"

He was looking over at a clock in the real world. He disbanded the party with Miryo and gated out. Mohi invited Miryo to the party and they continued. Coinchii came back in town of Dun Lorieg. He walked over to the Chaos Gate.

"Delta Server!"Coinchii shouted.

He appeared in Mac Anu and turned to the Chaos Gate.

"Delta Chosen Forbidden Great Hall!".

Coinchii warped away.

He appeared in some large room. It was like a large stone Roman style room. There was a large U shaped table and he was on the inside. The table had numerous brown chairs around it, In the middle was large red carpet with a yellow outline and there was a carpet leading up the stairs to the exit. He looked around and saw four other players standing there as well. AnakinseZ was in the doorway walking down the stairs.

"This is everyone. You guys ready now?"AnakinseZ asked walking down slowly, his sword drawn. He got down to the bottom step."Line up shoulder to shoulder everyone."

Everyone obeyed.

"Now the first one, Blademaster Junhi, come over here."AnakinseZ commanded.

A blademaster stepped forward. He had a lime green short sleeve shirt with a long sleeve red shirt beneath it, he had large black pants with a red and green dots running the sides and japanese style sandals, he had a belt with the sword sheath on one side and a large sheet of metal on the other side. He stepped in front of AnakinseZ standing strait up. His hair was short and semi spiked up, it was a typical shade of brown.

"Kneel first,"AnakinseZ replied in a less serious tone.

Junhi laughed nervously and knelled down.

"As the head of October, ally to "The World", and as the protector of it swell, I grant you the ranking of Elite Rogue,"AnakinseZ replied slowly placing his sword on Jonhi's head. A shining gold light began to emit from Junhi and the sword for a second, then returned to normal."You now have the starting out abilities of jailing another player and authorized PKing. Abuse these powers and you will be severely punished, us them for good and your powers will grow,"

AnakinseZ put the sword back in front of him, with the blade's tip towards the ground and the handle in both hands. Junhi walked back over to his spot in the line up.

"Next come over Heavyblade, Coinchii,"Coinchii ran over and knelled down, it was the same as what he did Junhi.

Coinchii bowed in thanks as AnakinseZ finished and walked back over to his spot in line. Next he called a player over by the name of Ace who was a blademaster, he was on the short side, and his character wore sheet metal armor his shoulders, sides, and shins. The rest of his cloths were black with a red trim at the end. His hair was also red with the tips dyed black. The same thing happened to Ace as well and he returned to his spot afterwards.

AnakinseZ called over female blademaster next, her name was Serene. She had caramel brown hair which fell below her shoulders, She wore a sleeveless midriff blue top and slightly baggy pair of shorts. Her boots came about half way up to her knee and were blue also. Her sword was in a black sheath with a a blue wavy line going from one end to the other.

The last one AnakinseZ called over was another swordsman. This guy had a ninja like outfit that was dark blue. He had the sword sideways along his lower back. His name was Shadows.

"We have our first test as well, time to show you the special abilities you'll have while in a group,"AnakinseZ said.

He had everyone trade member addresses then he sent all five a party invitation.

"If it's with another member of October then we have permission to have larger parties then three."

AnakinseZ turned around and they were all warped away. They appeared in a dungeon that resembled an arena. They heard footsteps coming in from behind, and all six turned around.

"Coinchii is that you?" he heard a voice come from the darkness of the door.

Mohi, Demon, and Miryo ran in. Coinchii went wide eyed.

"Sorry but you'll have to stand back, this is a test to see the capabilities of the Elite Rogue Squadron,"AnakinseZ looking around. The five walked towards the portal and it began to react. A large monster stepped out. It had no legs but stood and walked around on what resembled hands. It was green and it's body looked like a wingless fly. It's face, a dragon's face, with what looked an elephant's trunk. The trunk was the size of a large tree trunk.

"Now you must defeat the unbeatable monster," AnakinseZ said pointing his sword towards the monster.

"But we took care of it outside, the giant demi-human thing,"Miryo pouted.

"That must have been a normal monster, but not bad that you got this far with out trouble. This place is high level.,"AnakinseZ said trying to make Miryo feel better.

Demon and Mohi were sitting down against the wall watching the fight. The monster ran towards the five then slammed down it's trunk. Junhi and Shadows jumped to one side and Coinchii, Serene, and Ace jumped over to right. The monster reacted by swinging his trunk towards Junhi and Shadows, it hit Junhi and took out about half of his hp. Coinchii brought his sword over his head and jumped at the monster's neck. It countered by lifting up one of its hands from the ground and smacking Coinchii away like a bug. Serene had gotten behind the monster managed to get a few slashes on it, but it didn't flinch in any pain. Junhi had recovered and was going for the trunk but it was retaliating by flailing it around. It seemed to be swinging wildly and managed to catch Ace off guard, he was hit and knocked into the wall. Coinchii slipped beneath the trunk and was crawling up it's hand. Once on top he resumed to attack various places on the monster's back. The monster soon began to scream in pain from the five fighters. It fell to the ground and the Elite Rogue Squadron had regrouped.

The monster began to glow green and it seemed to blow up. The light faded and a player was standing there. She fell to the ground and didn't seem to have any weapons. She had long light green hair, and her cloths were tattered to the point you couldn't tell what it used to be. They heard a slight moan and she picked herself up.

"You pathetic scum,"she grunted.

She was holding her stomach and arm as though she was hurt. She shook her head back and forth and her cloths became restored she had a long green robe that started to become lighter at the waist down. The sleeves were long and there was a flap on the topside that went into the rings she wore on her middle fingers. The damage and marks on her body from before, now were gone and she seemed to have no damage.

"Jade, return now, you've been defeated, you cannot die before we finish,"they heard a woman's voice from above.

They looked around but were unable to find a source from the voice. The girl cursed and disappeared in a glowing green light.

"So she must be Jade. What just happened though?"Ace asked in a calm voice.

"Not bad, you all pass the test, you're now part of October,"AnakinseZ said, but he didn't sound excited. He paused for a second, then resumed to look around.

"So do they get a title?"Mohi asked walking over now.

"That was just rumor,"AnakinseZ replied,"The player managed get away, but we now know what one of them looks like, and we know they work under someone,"AnakinseZ complimented the group's work.

"What's this?"Miryo asked walking out from the next room. She was holding what looked like a necklace, it had a golden ring on it.

"Seems to be a very rare item. Put it on and you get a boost in your stats plus, you'll have a second appearance of cloths to have,"Shadows replied.

"Really?"Miryo said excitedly.

She quickly put the necklace on, but the outfit didn't change, her stats did get an increase.

"Must be a less powerful one,"AnakinseZ replied.

Everyone looked over."Not all of the items change your appearance, they actually have three different stages of these items. The first one will only increase your stats, the next level also gives your character a custom outfit, and the strongest level will add a title. I think we should call it a day for now."

AnakinseZ warped everyone out of the dungeon. After saying goodbyes everyone logged of day. Ryo took of his VR helmet and leaned back in his chair. He sighed as he looked at the clock. He climbed over into his bed and fell asleep.

After everyone logged out AnakinseZ called a meeting.

"Thanks for coming Momiri and Skyld. I think we may have to watch the system closely, seems there's a group of AIs or players that have the ability to transform themselves into strong monsters, among other things,"AnakinseZ said to the two.

"I'll let the company know to look into it,"Momiri replied.

She obviously wasn't a normal player. Her chacter had a red dress with the split going down in front that started around knee level. Her character was somewhat short so the black trimmed dress look somewhat ackward. The end of the sleeves opened up so it looked like the dress was too big for her almost.

"Seems knowing the Game Administrator has advantages,"Skyld replied.

Momiri sighed.

"I asked you to stop calling me that, I prefer just Momiri like it was back then,"she said with a slight laugh.

"Anyways why is this such a worry to you?"Skyld asked now looking back over to AnakinseZ.

"The way she warped, was exactly like those two,"he replied.

Momiri and Skyld realized the threat they would be facing.

"Then I shall let the word get out in the company right away,"Momiri bowed and warped away.

Skyld looked over at AnakinseZ and nodded then he warped away also.

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Hope you enjoyed it. Even without the cast of Purify, AIC, will have quite a large cast, so hopefully you don't have trouble getting the characters mixed up. If you have any troubles reading let me know in a review or something and I'll fix it up, make improvements, keep it in mind for future use, or something along those lines anyways.


	7. Chapter 7:Gruntyback Competition:Round 1

Hey everyone, back with another chapter, hope I didn't leave you waiting too long. The chapter's title says it's about the gruntyback competition, but thats only about half of the chapter. Enjoy

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"Ryo!"Ryo's mom shouted at the bottom of the stairs,"Ryo Sumi Kuinichi!"

"I don't have a middle name mom, and I'm right here,"Ryo said looking out of the living room. His mom began to blush.

"I need to say something to make me sound strict."

"Yeah, that's what a normal mom says..."

"What are you implying Ryo?"his mom asked, arms folded, glaring over.

"You're the best mom in the world. I love you,"Ryo answered with a sweat drop running down his head.

"That's what I thought,"she hummed as she took Hiro and left.

Ryo slid down the couch and sighed in relief. He woke up early that day and had nothing to do. He already cleaned his room, did the dishes, his homework, and took out the trash. He sighed again. It was only 7:30, no one wakes up this early on a Saturday he thought to himself. He perked up and got an idea. He quickly ran to his room and started the Altimit system.

"A little training here and there when they don't know it and soon I'll be a higher level,"Ryo said laughing.

He had three new e-mails. The first two from CC Corp and last one was from Sakura. He opened the first one.

"The gruntyback competition will take place over a few days, two fights per day and per character. For example We have 256 combatants so for the first day(today) everyone will fights once so we would have 128. The next Saturday there will be two matches per person which would leave 64 then 32, next week 16 and so on and so forth. The first few fights will not consist of an audience because of the large number of competitors. You're battle, Coinchii, will take place at 2:30 at Delta Hungry Agonizing Colosseum."Ryo looked over the message a few times so he would remember the time and place. He scrolled over to the next one from CC Corp

"Congratulations! You are one of the winners of the plushie contest. Reply to this message with the name of the character whose plushie you want, and we will send it to you with your Skyld the Master Knight plushie. The prizes should arrive in roughly 3-5 business days."Ryo cheered and replied saying he wanted a plushie of himself, Coinchii. He now scrolled over to the last one Sakura's.

"I'm going to be gone until Wednesday, so I can't play with you for 4 whole days. Don't worry though, love, I'll be thinking about you. xoxo"A sweat drop fell down Ryo's head. He decided to log onto "The World", he could train with his grunty before the actual contest.

"Hey Coinchii!"a voice said. Coinchii turned around, after he finished materializing. It was Ace from the other day.

"Hey, what's up?"Coinchii replied.

"Well I was planning on going to a dungeon, where the rumors say a strange player character is, but it turns out my partner had to go somewhere."

"Is it a hard dungeon or something?"

"It's not really hard, but It's always safer to travel in groups in case one dies they can be revived, when in a party."

"I'll go then, I wonder if the player is like the green girl from the other day."Coinchii replied.

The two formed a party and walked over to the Chaos Gate. There was a silence as they stood there.

"So, what are the keywords?"Coinchii asked looking over.

Ace was silent.

"My partner had it..."Ace replied, with a drooping head.

A sweat drop fell down Coinchii's head.

"You're just messing with me, right?"Coinchii said elbowing Ace in the ribs, with half of a laugh.

Ace sighed.

"You two are looking for the strange player character?"a woman's voice said from behind.

The two turned around and saw a heavy axeman standing there. She wore a blue skirt and blue top with puffy short sleeves. Her hair was black, and her character was a bit pale. Her hair seemed get longer as it came to the front, where her eyes were red. She carried a huge ax that was at least her size, most likely bigger. It had a brown handle and then a huge four side ax blade.

"Are you two going to keep staring or answer my question?"her voice seemed to be both serious and emotionless at the same time. The two nodded dumbfound.

"We don't know the keywords though,"Coinchii said rubbing his head looking at his shoes.

He suddenly received her member address.

"Give me your member address now and invite me to this party, I know the words,"she said in the same tone as before.

Coinchii just stared and obeyed. After she was in the party she walked up to the gate.

"Delta Chosen Happy Fort Walls,"she said as they warped away.

They appeared in a desert but it was nighttime.

"Excuse me but what is your name?"Ace asked as they arrived.

"The dungeon is this way,"she responded ignoring Ace's question.

Coinchii and Ace looked at each other and sighed. There was no choice but to follow her if they wanted to find the player character. They walked through the desert, which was seemed to have no landmarks anywhere to be found. Some monsters were scattered around the field, but the two decided since the girl didn't seem to be into fighting them, they wouldn't either.

"Here it is."she said stopping in the middle of nowhere.

Coinchii was scratching his head in confusion. She sighed and knelled down wiping away some sand revealing a large brown cellar door. She pulled it open and walked inside. They continued in and the map itself was pretty weak. They managed to get through it with ease.

"Can't you at least tell us your name?"Coinchii begged as they entered the third level.

"That was the 27th time you've asked,"the girl in blue replied.

"Really? I lost count at 18 so..."Ace commented.

"I'm just curious as to your name,"Coinchii responded.

"If you must know my name it's Aqua,"she replied gripping her ax harder getting frustrated.

"Ah, nice to meet you Aqua,"Coinchii said putting out his hand.

She ignored his attempt to shake hands and turned around walking further in. Coinchii sighed and they continued walking.

"Err I'm Coinchii and he's Ace."

"I don't care who you two are,"she said bluntly.

Coinchii looked over to Ace, as though he knew what to do. Ace kept following Aqua, while Ryo sighed and began dragging his feet as they continued on.

"This is the last level,"Ace said as they walked inside the fifth level of the dungeon.

They walked into the next room and the doors slammed shut. The portal began to fade. It was only a goblin. Ace and Coinchii walked forward, but Aqua stood back and observed. Coinchii swung his sword and it hit the goblin in the stomach sending it flying like a baseball being hit by a baseball bat. It hit the ground, and he grinned as it said zero hp. The goblin turned blue and stood back up.

"What the hell, it's stronger now,"Ace said wide eyed he drew his sword and jumped forward with one thrust of his leg.

He sliced at the goblin only to have it duck and slash him in the stomach. Ace hit the ground and rolled over a few times dropping his sword. Coinchii looked over at Aqua, who was laughing and sitting against the wall.

"You're one of the hackers like the Jade woman aren't you?"Coinchii asked fiercely.

He returned to the goblin and barely managed to block the it's attack.

"Oh please, a hacker? Sure then why not, you won't leave here alive anyways,"she replied and warped away in a blue light.

"Dammit this was a trap, what was she hoping to gain by bring-."Coinchii was cut off when he blocked another attack.

"I can't do anything about it now I'll just report it to AnakinseZ later."

Coinchii threw off the goblins attack and slashed down getting a hit. The goblin stumbled backwards and fell over. Coinchii put away his sword and began to run away, his attack hit the monster but it was immune to damage. In the midst of the action he forgot about his surroundings. The door was still closed since the battle was still going on so Coinchii just ran into a gate, blocking the door. He slid down, twitching slightly. The goblin jumped from behind and attempted to get an attack on Coinchii with its dagger merely to find itself knocked out of the way with a slash from Ace.

"We need to get out of here,"Coinchii said pulling himself up on the gate.

"There's no way we can fight this, I'm border line dead from its one hit,"Ace said, as he re-adjusted his sword.

Coinchii took the chance to send a message to AnakinseZ, only to find it was blocked.

"Communication is jammed, we can't contact anyone,"Coinchii said knocking the goblin back again.

Someone warped in the middle of the two in the midst of the commotion. Before they could see anything though, they were warped back into town.

"Aren't you Momiri, the Game Administrator?"Ace asked after they appeared in town and they got a look at her.

"There was a disturbance in data, so I checked what was going on. Are you two okay?"Momiri asked in a kind voice.

The two players nodded. She bowed to them and warped away. Coinchii decided to try contacting AnakinseZ again, this time it went through. Coinchii looked over at the clock it was 2:15.

"I have to go to the gruntyback combat event, I have a fight in 15 minutes, can you tell AnakinseZ everything?"Coinchii asked standing up with his sword on his shoulders.

Ace nodded, then the party was disbanded. Coinchii walked over to the gate, and paused.

"...I...forgot the...keywords..."He said moaning, with a drooping head.

Ace fell over.

"Outta my way you noob, I have to go the gruntyback competition in few minutes,"a deep voice said from behind.

"Who are you calling a noob?"Coinchii said turning around to confront the player.

He went wide-eyed, the player wore a loose pair of dark green pants, and had quite a tanned skin tone. He had no shoes and only an eye patch. His hair was a bit on the short side and went off to the sides. He had a hairy chest and muscles abound. He had a large sword that was blue and broke off to two tips that were black. His character had 5 o'clock shadow.

"I'm Hinoja, and get out of of my way, I have 13 minutes to get to Delta Hungry Agonizing Colosseum,"he grunted again, pulling his sword from his shoulders.

"That's the map name,"Coinchii said with his fist in his palm, and a gleam in his eye.

Hinoja got tired and picked up Coinchii placing him to the side.

"Only fighters allowed to enter spectators aren't allowed till the fourth round,"he said and turned towards the Chaos Gate,"Delta Hungry Agonizing Colosseum!"

Yellow rings surrounded him as he disappeared.

"I can't wait to beat that fool,"Coinchii said with a vein pulsing from his head.

He ran over to the Chaos Gate.

"Delta Hungry Agonizing Colosseum!"he disappeared, and came up in a large field.

The grass was came up to his ankles and a few trees were around. He looked up towards the sky and saw a scattered white puffy clouds, they almost resembled marshmallows. _I haven't had marshmallows in awhile I wonder if we have any_ Coinchii thought looking back down towards the field. He saw two fighters. The grunties were both brown, and seemed to be wearing some kind of hood. The first rider was a wavemaster, and had fingerless brown gloves, and a mostly brown outfit. The other competitor looked like a heavy axeman, he had on what resembled and armored shorts and his upper body was covered in chain mail with thick looking shoulder pads. His weapon was an ax with a long pole.

The heavy axeman's grunty was running full gallop only to have the rider get knocked off by the wavemaster's attack. Fireballs surrounded the heavy axeman and converged on him knocking him off. Someone in what looked like a samurai outfit mixed with a referee's came from the sky, and stopped on the ground almost instantly, from his almost mach speed lowering. He walked over to the heavy axeman and the heavy axeman was warped away. The wavemaster got off his grunty and started hopping around excited. The referee gave the wavemaster something and the the wavemaster was warped away.

"Where's that loser, Hinjoja?"Coinchii said just now realizing he was nowhere to be found.

"What did you say noob? It's Hinoja!"a voice shouted from behind.

Coinchii stiffened up and shivers ran up his back. He slowly turned around, and laughed nervously. The referee walked in between them.

"Players Coinchii and Hiniji, correct?"the referee said.

Coinchii started laughing, while Hinoja fell over.

"Summon your grunties."

The two obeyed and pulled out their whistles, to call their grunty. Yakeshi appeared shortly and was licking Coinchii in his face. Coinchii petted Yakeshi then wiped off the slobber, getting on top. He looked over at Hinoja's grunty and it was a muscular looking grunty, with a sweatband for a collar, it was about the same color as Hinoja's skin tone.

The referee raised his hand the two warped to the spot where the other two players were before. There was a message saying begin, so Coinchii drew his sword and commanded Yakeshi to head towards Hinoja by pointing his sword. Hinoja had his sword out and the two players clashed swords, sparks flew as Coinchii's sword flew into the air, the two fighters passed each other. Yakeshi turned around allowing Coinchii to grab his sword before it hit the ground. He brought it up after catching it, in time to block an attack by Hinoja. The two grunties ran apart, per command, to create distance, then they turned back around charging at each other. Coinchii put the back of the handle in his armpit in order to balance it so it would face straight ahead. Hinoja slashed at Coinchii but met the blade of Coinchii's sword forcing him over and off the grunty first. Coinchii looked over his shoulder as Yakeshi stopped to see the vanquished Hinoja. The referee zoomed over, and did the instant stop again.

"The winner is Coinchii and Yakeshi,"He announced holding up a paddle with a red O on it.

He walked over to Hinoja.

"Player Hinoja is defeated and there for out of the tournament."

As the referee finished the grunty and Hinoja disappeared. The referee walked over to Coinchii. Coinchii took the paper the referee was holding out and was warped away.

Coinchii appeared in town, to find the others waiting there. AnakinseZ, Ace, Mohi, and Demon were waiting on the stairs, they turned in curiosity. Coinchii grinned and gave a thumbs up to show he won.

"I won mine earlier around 8:00, so I guess we both make it to the next round."Mohi said patting Coinchii on the back,"The paper you got tells you the time and place of your next match, so It's only 2:40 let's go to a dungeon, or something,"he said looking around.

"First, Coinchii, you have some information?"AnakinseZ said.

"Yes, sir!"Coinchii said running in front of AnakinseZ and saluting.

AnakinseZ sighed and looked upwards.

"Err, report soldier?"AnakinseZ replied with a sweat drop.

Ace walked over next to Coinchii as he began.

"Ace heard a rumor about the sighting of a strange player character, from his friend. Earlier today they were to meet up and go into th-"Coinchii was interrupted.

"That's nice, but you don't have to sound official. Just tell me as though you were going to tell someone else,"AnakinseZ with his head drooping.

Coinchii smiled and saluted again. Everyone fell over this time.

"So we have Aqua, Jade, and their leader at least,"AnakinseZ replied as Coinchii finished telling his story,"Also it seems each person would have different powers I guess. Jade was transformed into a monster while Aqua seems to be able to recreate monster data making it stronger."

"What are we going to do now?"Ace asked sitting back against the wall.

"Not quite sure, I can check with the system and we can try to gather information."

Demon walked over."You're missing an important fact."

Everyone looked at Demon.

"Is that so?"AnakinseZ said intrigued.

Demon nodded.

"We have means to contact Aqua, or track her you could say. She joined your party so you have her member address, right?"AnakinseZ looked over realizing Demon was right.

"It's a bit too easy don't you think? If these people are in a group I'm sure they have to be organized, so they wouldn't be this sloppy would they?"Mohi responded resting his staff in his lap as he sat on the stairs.

"I'll check into this matter, what's her member address number?"AnakinseZ replied looking back over at Coinchii.

Coinchii recited the number and AnakinseZ warped away.

"Well see you guys later."Ace said waving as he logged off.

"Oh by the way guys, Sakura is away till Wednesday, so freedom till then."Coinchii hummed with a smile on his face.

"You're quite the observant boy aren't you, Demon?"they heard a voice come from above.

They looked up and saw a shadow in the glare of the sun, it soon landed in between the three and the Chaos Gate. There was a twinblade sitting there, who was wearing tight cloths. He was tall and kind of slender, and his cloths were all black with a few white lines along the shoulder. On his wrist was the where his katars were sitting, in a sort of bracer. His hair was green, with a ponytail in the back and two bangs of his hair falling in his face. He had a small scar below his left eye.

"Zero, at your service,"the twinblade said bowing with one arm out.

He stood back up and laughed a little.

"Something fun is about to happen, let's trade member addresses,"Zero was rocking back and forth humming some weird melody.

Coinchii looked over at Mohi who was clueless.

"You're the player that hacks the CC Corp computers aren't you?"Demon asked, with his hand on his chin.

Zero nodded as he passed out his member address. Coinchii shrugged and figured that it wouldn't hurt, so he sent his member address to Zero.

"Are you sure you should do that?"Mohi asked, looking over.

"They say it comes down to the people you know,"Coinchii replied rubbing the back of his head.

Demon and Mohi gave in and gave over their member addresses.

"Domo origato...See ya later,"he said he warped away.

Ryo lifted up the headset and looked over at the clock, it was 3:37 already, he had to take his brother to the park. He put the headset back on and re-entered "The World".

"Sorry guys, but I gotta take my brother to the park,"Coinchii said.

He logged out, took off the headset, and turned off the computer then looked over at the clock again. 3:38 I was supposed to take him at 3:30 _I don't think mom will mind_, Ryo thought to himself. He stood up and did some stretching, then walked over to the door. He opened it up to find his mother standing in the doorway.

"Oh...umm, hi mom,"Ryo said backing away, wide-eyed.

Ryo's mom had her mom folded and was tapping her shoe."I was on my way to take Hiro to the park I swear."

"No need your father took him, and I've been at this door for almost 10 minutes, what took you?"she replied.

"You didn't have to wait, you know you coulda walked in,"Ryo replied blinking.

"If I did that then the impact would have left less of a mark wouldn't it."

"True I suppose..."

"Exactly,"she replied humming and walking away.

Ryo had a sweat drop fall down his head.

"My mother is wierd,"Ryo mumbled, walking downstares.

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Reviews, ideas, and so on welcomed. Also from here on out I'll give information on the next chapter in ratings.

Next Chapter's-  
Plot:Half plot-related, half side-chapter  
Importance:Pretty important chapter  
Things to look forward to:New character  
Balance:Both reality and "The World", but mostly "The World"


	8. Chapter 8:Bets Are Off

Ah, I meant to update this weekend but never got around to it, soes...my bad. Erm, last chapter's closing notes I said there was a new character, but there's actually two for better or for worse you can decide. Also on another note this chapter has over 4,000 words which compared to most other fanfics makes it huge(Even though it still kind of feels short). Anyways this is still shorter than my future chapters which you'll be reading (Or hopefully will be reading). Enjoy.

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Ryo had just cut the neck of the last of the dragon's five heads. It's body and last head fell to the ground and withered away. Ryo pulled his gleaming silver sword up and returned it to his brown scabbard on his waist. The brushed off his armor which also a gleaming silver color and moved the guard on his helmet by raising it. He adjusted his shield which was on his left arm, and walked passed the bones of the dragon. He approached the single stone tower standing by the back of the dragon's nest.

"Fair Damsel, I have slain thee dragon with thine sword. Shalst we now flee from thine imprisonment of stone and rock?"Ryo called, his right hand raised towards the window.

"Oh Ryo, my Ryo, for thou I shalt do anything,"A voice replied,"Oh Ryo. Ryo? Ryo!"

Ryo jumped up in his bed, and began rubbing his eyes and looking around. He looked over and saw Suichi sitting in his chair by the computer. Suichi sighed while a sweat drop was falling down his head.

"What the hell were you dreaming about?"he asked standing up.

Ryo laughed nervously and stood up out of his bed.

"Umm, why do you ask?"Ryo said nervously going to his dresser to get some clothes.

Suichi was looking away not wanting to see Ryo in his boxers, he pulled out one of Ryo's sword and began to look at it.

"It sounded like some Medieval thing,"Suichi said slashing sideways with the sword at the air.

"Let me take a shower be right back,"Ryo said yawning and walking out of the room to go the shower. He passed by the living room and glanced over, it was 9:30.

Ryo came out after taking his shower and walked into the kitchen. Suichi was walking out, patting his stomach.

"You're mom is a good cook, you're lucky,"Suichi said throwing out a tooth pick.

He began to whistle a song as he walked back upstairs to Ryo's room. Meanwhile Ryo's mom was in the kitchen doing some cleaning.

"So do I get a meal?"Ryo asked standing in the doorway.

"If you make some,"his mom replied. Ryo's head began to droop, slightly turned.

He sighed and walked over pulling out a box of Lucky Charms. He went over the dishwasher and pulled out a clean bowl and spoon. He poured the cereal into the bowl and went to get the milk. Ryo's mom called him into the living room after he poured the milk and had just finished putting it away.

"Can you do me a favor Ryo?"she asked as he walked in.

"Would I say no?"Ryo replied crossing his arms behind his head.

"I need you to go wake up Hiro for me,"she said.

Ryo agreed but went to eat his cereal first. He went to the kitchen with a grin on his face getting ready to grab his bowl of Lucky Charms. He opened his eyes as he noticed he didn't grab anything. He stared for a few seconds at the empty counter top, his cereal was missing.

"Good morning, Ryo,"Hiro said over from the table.

He was eating the bowl of Lucky Charms Ryo had prepared. Ryo's head was drooping and he waved. He threw away the box of cereal since it was now empty from the stolen bowl.

"Lucky Charms? Nothing lucky about it if you ask me. Lousy food thief,"Ryo was grumbling as he walked into his room.

Suichi was looking at a magazine about anime. On the front there was a character who had spiky blond hair and wore black sunglasses. His body was mostly covered by a pitch black cloak, but you could see black leather armor beneath it and bandages along the chest and on the arms.

"So what are you up to? I mean you came over pretty early,"Ryo said laying back down on the bed.

One his legs were falling off onto the floor. Suichi was reading an article about a new anime coming out soon, and was more interested in it then Ryo at the moment. A sweat drop fell down Ryo's head as he picked up his remote. He turned on some music and threw the remote on the pillow.

"Huh, oh sorry. Yeah I was curious as to what kind of computer you had,"Suichi replied.

"Why?"

"Well I heard about some new accessory for "The World". They have a new CD that allows you add any music you want onto the background. They also say you can change the song while playing,"Suichi replied.

Ryo stood up, wide-eyed. He was a big fan of music, and listened to almost any kind. Suichi had already started up the computer and was beginning to look through the files.

"So how much does it cost?"Ryo asked walking over.

Suichi clicked onto a file that had no name. A site popped up and Ryo suddenly jumped forward closing it while he knocked Suichi out of the way.

"What was that?"Suichi asked standing up and picking up the chair.

"It wasn't a guide for stuff like in the Anarchist's Cookbook. Why would you think that? Man, Suichi, you are crazy,"Ryo said laughing nervously.

A sweat drop fell down Suichi's head. He perked up as he found the computer specs. He looked over it and gave a nod showing it was compatible with the music program.

"Mom, I'll be back later, I'm going out for a bit,"Ryo said making sure his wallet was secure in his pocket.

Ryo and Suichi were now walking out the door.

They managed to make a it a few blocks before Ryo started complaining about how he was hungry.

"There's an ice cream vendor over there would that work?"Suichi finally gave in.

Ryo nodded and ran over. They were walking through the park since the game store was on the other side. Ryo ran up to the ice cream vendor and began to look at the stickers deciding what he would want. The ice cream seller was inside turned around. He was wearing a white shirt with red lines going down and what resembles a sailor's hat. Suichi finally got over as Ryo decided he what he wanted.

"Hey person, can you help me?"Ryo said trying to get the attention of the person.

The guy turned around only for them to realize it was Dylan. Ryo and Suichi were staring wide-eyed and Dylan scratched the back of his head nervously.

"Umm what are you doing?"Suichi finally asked.

"I'm not supposed to socialize..."Dylan replied,"How may I help you today?"Dylan had his eyes closed as though he regretted doing this.

"Umm can I have this one?"Ryo said pointing to a picture of an ice cream cone with chocolate ice cream on the inside, the top was covered by crushed peanuts.

"That's a dollar fifty..."Dylan replied. He handed over the ice cream as Ryo gave him the money.

"Seriously, why are you here?"Suichi asked.

"I can't talk, sorry guys, but could you leave..."Dylan said half sighing. He looked out the side of his eye for a moment. Suichi was wide-eyed in confusion but agreed. Ryo and Suichi left the park and were a block away from the game store.

"Aren't you curious as to why Dylan was working as an ice cream vendor?"Suichi asked as they crossed the street.

Ryo was ignoring him and enjoying the ice cream with a big smile on his face.

"Yeah I'm talking to someone who is distracted easily," Suichi had a sweat drop going down his head.

They walked into the store after passing a neon said that said 'Game World'. On the inside there was a clerk at the counter who seemed kind of young. She looked as though she was only 17 or 18. She was reading some magazine. She had a blue t-shirt and pair of blue jean shorts. She had a black apron on that said Game World. At the top of the the apron was pin that had her name, Kelly, on it. The two walked past her and looked around. There was long rows of shelves, which were practically invisible behind the numerous games. On the right there was a set of stairs leading up a few feet onto an elevated area. There was a sign saying game accessories hanging over head.

"It's probably there,"Suichi said putting his hands in his pockets and walking over.

Ryo followed, his ice cream was half way gone and he was eating the cone now. They walked up the stairs and came to the second level. Ryo finished his ice cream and was now browsing all the shelves. They had various different things, such as CDs for upgrading, or adding new additions, controllers, mouses for computers, memory cards, and more.

"Found it!"Suichi said pulling up a CD from the shelf behind Ryo.

Ryo looked over and took the CD from the Suichi and began to look at it. Ryo was holding it silent, then a big grin crossed his face while he hugged it and began to roll on the floor. Suichi took a few steps back and looked around. Ryo was finally finished and stood up whistling a song. They walked back down and over to the clerk. Kelly took out a scanner gun and shot at the back of the case. $25.37 appeared on the register. Ryo pulled out his brown leather wallet and opened it and began to look through his money, he pulled out a 20 and a 10 and gave it to the clerk. She took it and gave him back $4.63.

Ryo put the money in his wallet as they walked out of store. They began to walk back to his house, by going through the park.

"Let's stop over by Dylan again,"Suichi said as the ice cream vendor came into view.

The two ran over to the shop.

"Hey Dylan,"Ryo said as he walked around a tree.

He didn't hear a response so he opened his eyes. He found Suichi looking puzzled and Ryo looked back over at Dylan. Dylan wasn't there anymore, there was a man, probably in his 30's or so, and quite hairy.

"Hey you two kids see anyone here in the last hour?"He asked in a rough sounding voice.

"Wasn-"Ryo began to say but Suichi's hands covered his mouth.

"Not today, sir,"Suichi replied nervously pulling Ryo away.

Suichi pulled Ryo behind a tree after they got a decent distance away.

"Ugh, your hands taste horrible,"Ryo said with watery eyes and his tounge hanging out.

"Not my fault your mouth was open,"Suichi replied shaking his hands in an attempt to get the spit off,"So Dylan wasn't hired what was he doing there?"

"Not sure,"Ryo replied returning to normal.

They rustling in the tree from above them. Ryo and Suichi looked up confused. There was more rustling and someone fell out landing on Ryo. They saw a kid who was rather short. He seemed to be about six or seven years old. He had a blue t-shirt and shorts. His hair was black and on the short side and looked as though it hadn't been combed lately. He was sitting on top of Ryo's head hitting him with some stick he was holding in his hands.

"Haha, I got you now,"the kid said.

Suichi walked over and picked the little kid up. Ryo was rubbing the bumps on his head from the rather hard stick.

"What's the big idea brat?"Ryo said staring at the kid.

"I'm not a brat!"he responded, lightning sparked in between their eyes.

The two began to clinch their teeth and growled at each other.

"That would be low fighting a kid this young,"Suichi said to Ryo.

"This thing isn't a kid it's a brat!"Ryo said pointing his finger at the kid.

The kid opened his mouth and bit Ryo's finger. Ryo began to squirm around and the kid slipped out of Suichi's grip. Ryo put his foot on the kids head and began to push but his finger was stuck in the kid's teeth still. Suichi pushed them apart, with a drooping head, over the pathetic sight. Ryo was holding his finger which was bleeding from the tooth marks left by the kid. The kid was spitting out the taste left from Ryo's finger.

"You're so annoying!"they both shouted at each other.

Suichi was sitting against the tree reading a book with a pair of reading glasses on.

"What kind of brat, jumps out of a tree and attacks people?"Ryo said with his teeth clinched

"What kind of big kid, tries to beat up little kids!"the kid replied back.

"Who the hell are you anyways?"

"I should ask the same thing! What makes you think you're the boss of me?"

"Because I'm older and don't attack people at random!"

"I can do whatever I want!"

"What makes you think that?"

"Because I'm Kiane Sumabi!"the kid argued back.

The two had there foreheads pushing against each other at this point. Ryo stood up and looked surprised.

"Did you say Sumabi?"he asked in a normal tone.

"Yeah, everyone knows my daddy, he has the most money in the town,"Kiane replied holding his arms out.

Ryo began to laugh rolling on the ground. He stopped laughing, breathing slightly heavy and stood back up. Ryo looked over at Suichi. Suichi was now looking over after he put the book and glasses behind himself where they mysteriously disappeared.

"How did you do that?"Ryo asked wide-eyed.

"Not sure, but it helps when I get bored of you arguing,"Suichi replied.

"You don't even wear reading glasses though,"Ryo replied.

Suichi shrugged and kneeled down next to Kiane.

"So you're Mr.Sumabi's kid? I'm Suichi nice to meet you,"Suichi said to the kid holding his hand out. The kid nodded and smiled shaking Suichi's hand by having to use both of his own.

"Huh, why are you being nice to this kid? Doesn't matter who he is he attacked me,"Ryo argued his arms folded.

"Stop complaining Ryo,"Suichi said standing back up.

"Nice to see there's someone nice to control this monster,"Kiane said pointing at Ryo.

"Who are you calling the monster, you brat?"Ryo said glaring at Kiane.

Kiane stuck his tounge out, and got hit in the head by Ryo.

"We have to install that CD by the way,"Suichi said picking up the CD that was dropped on the ground earlier.

"Yeah I can't wait to get my music on "The World","Ryo replied beginning to walk away.

"Wait! Monster, you play "The world"?"Kiane shouted, which caused Ryo to stop.

He walked back over and looked down at the kid.

"Yeah, so what's it to you?"

"I play the world too, and I bet I'm stronger then you!"

"You think so brat? Well then I'll take that bet,"Ryo said,"Meet me at Mac Anu by the Chaos Gate at 12:00 then." sparks flew from each others eyes.

The kid accepted by nodding and ran out of sight. Ryo checked his watch, it was 11:15.

"I'll go to my house then, I wanna see this. Can you install that by yourself?"Suichi asked.

Ryo nodded and they split up.

Ryo ran into his house saying hi to his mom, then ran into his room. He jumped down in his chair and put the CD off to the side for now. He figured he would install it after beating 'the brat'. He got on his computer and saw 2 e-mails after starting the Altimit System. One was from Sakura and the other one was from Ace. He opened the first one from Sakura.

"Hey Ryo! Did you miss me yesterday? Only 3 days left, I'm counting down till we meet again! Bai 3"Ryo sighed and deleted it. He scrolled down to this last one and opened it up.

"Hey Coinchii, Ana-Boss said he tried to track the number, it doesn't seem to exist. He was still busy so he had me send you this e-mail. Also he had me try to send a message to Aqua but to no avail, it seems she changed it or something." Ryo decided not to worry much about it and logged onto his computer. He closed the mail and clicked onto "The World". He noticed blinking words saying new by the BBS. He clicked over and decided to check it out.

'Special event, wizard chase!' one said. Ryo clicked on it and and saw the message.

"There will be a golden wizard at Delta Passed Dancing Hot Spring, the first one to get a hit on it will receive a rare item, with a special powers. Beware though the wizard will become hostile the more people after it."the message said, it was from someone named Venus. Ryo was interested and decided not to check out the other post, it didn't seem to be interesting since all it said was 'Weapons'. He quickly left the BBS and clicked onto "The World" as he put on his helmet.

Coinchii appeared in Mac Anu, and began to look around. It was 11:52 he figured people would be around by now.

"Is that you, monster?"a player said from behind.

There was a short twinblade, he wore baggy green shorts and brown shoes. He had a short sleeve kind of large green shirt. He had blond hair that seemed to shoot out everywhere with red tips going in. He had two normal size daggers to his side. They had a golden blade with a green triangle in the middle.

"You're that brat aren't you?"Coinchii said looking over.

Mohi was leaning against the wall.

"You read the BBS, right? That'll be the challenge the first one of us to get it wins."

"Fine by me I wouldn't mind winning a prize for beating you,"Coinchii replied.

Sparks shot between their eyes as they traded member addresses. They joined a party so they could track each other and make sure there was no cheating. Mohi was the leader of the party to save arguments, he walked over to the Chaos Gate.

"Delta Passed Dancing Hot Spring!"he shouted with his staff raised up.

The three warped away to a field. It was filled with steam and was a mountain looking map. There were a few hot springs scattered about but at the top of the path leading up the mountain was where the big hot springs were. At the lower half of the mountain was a platform like one you would find in a building.

"Ready, begin!"Mohi shouted lowering his staff.

"I, Kain, the twinblade shall win!"the kid shouted running off.

"We'll see about that you brat!"Coinchii shouted running in the opposite direction.

Mohi decided to walk up to the top springs, the monster floated by in front of Mohi only a few feet away, waving at him. It was a short old man with a long beard and yellow cloths, he was floating on a solid-gold, crystal bowl, which Mohi found to be oxymoron.

Coinchii started by checking around the base of the mountain he saw nothing out of the usual. He decided he could go up the mountain and get a look. He put his sword back on his back and began to climb up. After getting about 30 feet up from climbing, he saw the wizard floating above then it moved behind him.

"I got you!"Coinchii shouted pulling out his sword.

Before he could attack though he ended up falling back down onto the ground. He looked up and the wizard was laughing at him then flew away. He sat up and shook it off. His sword was laying a few feet away since he dropped it from the fall. He walked over and picked it back up and decided it would be better to stay on a place where he could walk.

"It's been 10 minutes since I saw that wizard, could that brat have gotten it?"Coinchii asked himself looking around.

"There you are!"a voice shouted and something landed on Coinchii.

He looked up to find Kain sitting on him with a grin on his face.

"What are you doing? You brat!"Coinchii shouted shoving him off.

"You aren't the monster!..Well technically you are A monster just not THE monster."Kain said with his back to Coinchii looking over his shoulders.

Coinchii pulled out his sword.

"You lousy brat!"Coinchii shouted.

He went to slash forward but stopped half way when the golden wizard floated right in between them. The two paused and silently watched the wizard float slowly past. They looked at each other then had a determined look on their face and began to chase after the wizard. The wizard kept ahead and was luring them everywhere. After about five minutes the two managed to get the wizard to corner itself into the mountain wall.

"Haa!"a voice shouted and another character came flying out of the sky and landed on top of the wizard after punching it into the ground.

The player had a red sleeveless shirt on and black pants similar to Coinchii's. His black boots came up high enough to pass his ankles, beyond that was hidden beneath the pants. He had red eyes and gray hair that fell to his ears. He seemed to be kind of buff but not overly muscular. He had a weapon on both of his hands, they were like brass knuckles only they were sitting on the palm and top of his hand. On the front side he had three long claws per each weapon.

"Yes, that event was fun, I wish it could have lasted longer though,"he said in a sort of deep sort of light voice.

"That was my kill!"both Coinchii and Kain shouted.

"Huh? Who are you two?"he asked bending down slightly.

He was a bit taller then Coinchii.

"I'm Coinchii, and this is brat. Now who the hell are you?"Coinchii demanded

"I'm Kain, not brat, you monster!"Kain shouted from behind.

"Well today's your lucky day you actually get to meet me the great and wonderful...Cuoka!"he said one foot on a rock and his right hand up with him pointing out,"I bet you want my autograph since I won the event, can't disappoint my fans."

"I don't your lousy autograph I want MY prize!"Coinchii and Kain shouted at the same time.

Cuoka handed them two sheets of paper with an autograph.

"Heh you people want a lot, fine you can have my member address also,"he replied completely ignoring the two.

Coinchii received Cuoka's member address and gave his over out of habit. Mohi walked over shortly.

"It says the event is over who beat it?"he asked walking around the corner.

"Another fan? Already? Wow I'm more popular then I though. I already have swarms of people coming after me,"Cuoka said with a grin on his face.

"You have no fans!"Kain and Coinchii shouted veins pulsing from their heads.

Mohi just stared as he was given an autograph and the member address.

"I got to go now, bye my adoring public,"Cuoka said then warped away.

"That pathetic loser,"Kain and Coinchii said their arms folded.

"What...just happened?"Mohi asked standing there.

He walked over to where Cuoka was standing and noticed a chest.

"Umm guys?"Mohi asked.

The two had already warped out. He bent down and opened the chest. It was the prize for the event. He shrugged and warped out also after taking it. It was a special item which was a crystal ball, it was made to power up any skills. They appeared in town and began to walk around.

"What a waste neither of us won,"Kain said with his arms folded behind his head.

Coinchii was walking with his sword resting on his shoulder.

"Oh yeah I forgot about the CD,"Coinchii said. He waved to Mohi and Kain and logged out.

Ryo took off his headset and looked over to find his CD. He pulled out "The World" CD and put in the music altering CD. He started it up and looked over at the clock. The CD would take all night since it was downloading Ryo's long list of songs. He looked over at the clock it was 3:50.

"The time sure does fly,"Ryo said as he left his computer. He walked downstairs to find something to eat.

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Questions, comments, concerns, reviews, critism, and so on welcomed.

Next Chapter's-

Plot:Main Story Driven  
Importance:Important  
Things to look forward to:New Enemy, New characters  
Balance:About half and half


	9. Chapter 9:Does Eccentric Work

Back with a new update, not much to really say this time, but the chapters get longer from here on out, this is one has almost twice as many words than the last chapter. Enjoy

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"What? Yes!"Ryo shouted punching the air, as his mom told him it was a school holiday,"I can make so much more progress on "The World". I can't wait!"

Ryo ran upstairs, in a second. He still had on the one sock he began to put on, the other one was sitting on the floor. His mother sighed and picked it up, to carry it to his room. Ryo thanked his mom as she dropped the sock off and went to start up the Altimit System. He had 3 e-mails, so he went over and checked the first one, it was from CC Corp. Ryo was surprised they send out so many e-mails.

"Sorry for any inconvenience, but "The World" will be down for maintenance, for the rest of the day. Once again we deeply apologize for any inconvenience."Ryo began to get teary eyed, the whole day and he couldn't even go on. He scrolled down to the next one from Sakura, and deleted it with out even looking since he knew it would say something about two days. He scrolled to the last one it was from Kiane.

"Hey monster, my dad wants to meet my new friends so, meet me in the park, so I can show you to him. Suichi is coming also. Meet me at 8:00am." Ryo figured if Suichi was going he might as well also. He looked over at the clock it was 7:45 already. He put on the other sock his mom on threw on his bed and put on his shoes, he grabbed his wallet too, out of habit. He walked downstairs and figured his mom had taken Hiro somewhere, so he just walked out.

He came up to the park, and saw Suichi. Ryo looked at his watch, it was 8:05 now. He looked up again and was able to make out Dylan leaning against the other side of the tree.

"Where is he?"Ryo asked as Suichi noticed noticed his presence.

"Not sure, he did say 8:00 am right?"Suichi asked.

"Damn, the brat tells us to come and he isn't even here,"Ryo replied.

"I shouldn't even be here,"Dylan replied with his arms folded and eyes closed.

"What are you doing here?"Ryo replied.

"Yeah, now that I think about it, you never did say why you were waiting with me,"Suichi commented.

"Besides, you hate little kids don't you?"Ryo asked.

"Hate is more personal, but I don't like little kids,"Dylan replied  
"Hi!"they looked over and saw Kiane.

Suichi waved, while Ryo forced a smile. Dylan was leaning against the tree unmoving.

"I brought the limo. My dad isn't home yet, but we can wait at my house,"Kiane said.

Suichi and Ryo looked at each other wide-eyed.

"Who's this guy?"Kiane asked pointing to Dylan.

"Dylan," he answered in an emotionless voice.  
"Whoa, you're so cool!"Kiane said getting wide eyed.

Dylan just stared.

"Right..."he replied getting off the tree standing up straight.

He looked around and began to walk over towards Kiane.

"Wait, so you call him cool and you only just met him?"Ryo asked as they began to walk towards the limo.

"Yeah, he's much cooler then you, monster,"Kiane said sticking his tounge out.

Ryo walked over and punched him in the head.

"Stop picking on him,"Suichi said as they were coming upon the exit to the park. Ryo folded his arms and snorted.

"Thanks Suichi, I'm glad someone controls this monster,"Kiane replied as they came to the corner before the exit.

"What are you ta-"Ryo stopped as he saw the limo,"It's so, so..."

Ryo couldn't finish the sentence he was becoming wide eyed at the limo. It was painted white with tinted windows, everything else was gold, or realistic looking paint. A man stepped out in a tuxedo and walked over to Kiane. He was pretty tall, and quite thin. His hair was getting a bit long and was brown, beginning to fade to gray.

"Master Kiane, are you ready to leave?"he asked.

Kiane nodded and the man walked over and opened the door. Kiane hopped inside the limo and the others followed.

"Thanks Jenning,"Kiane said as the man closed the door.

After a few moments the limo has started up and they began to leave. It had a long blue couch which curved at the back and came back around in a U shape, at the end of the couch at one side was a refrigerator, which Ryo was looking through. On the back of the seat were speakers but there was no music on at the moment. The carpeting on the ground was also plush and blue. There was a plasma screen TV towards the front where the privacy window was between the driver and passengers.

"You have every kind of Doritoes in here or something?"Ryo said pulling out one of the bags of Doritoes from the mini-fridge.

He walked and sat down with a big grin on his face as he began to eat the Doritoes and drink a Sprite he took. Suichi looked over at Kiane who was copying the way Dylan was sitting, and Dylan who was trying to ignore it.

"So how long will it be before we get to your house?"Suichi asked sliding down in his seat some.

"Not that long,"Kiane answered.

Ryo had finished his chips and was now putting the trash in the trash can next to the mini fridge. He looked outside as they came up to a gate along a large stone wall. They stayed there for a moment until the gates opened up and the limo drove inside.

"So many trees,"Ryo said wide eyed, it looked as though there were forests on both sides of the road.

"My dad says it adds arcuture or something to it,"Kiane said looking outside also.

"Architecture?"Suichi asked looking over.

"That's it,"Kiane replied.

They were passing the trees and came into a large loop in front of an enormous mansion. It was was like a semi circle in the front, and was about the size of three or four hotels put together. It was brown and red, made to look slightly old, and grand. In the loop there was a fountain with a cupid spitting water into a fountain.

"Here you are,"Jenning said opening the door as the four walked out.

Kiane got out first and walked over to the door of the mansion, then turned to wait for the others. Dylan walked out second and had his usual 'don't care' attitude. Ryo walked out and paused in front of the door, in awe from the size. Suichi walked out not looking and ran into Ryo knocking them both over. They took a few steps trying to keep their balance but tripped over and fell into the fountain.

"Heh, my bad,"Ryo said smiling with a sweatdrop falling down his head.

Suichi was looking over at Ryo through the corner of his eyes, one of which was twitching. They got out and began to wring out their cloths as Jenning took the limo over towards what looks like a large garage complex. Kiane opened the door and they walked in. It was a large room with two sets of stairs leading up to the next floor. There was no roof for this room on the first floor, because on the second floor roof was a large chandelier. There was a spread rug which was relatively large on the middle of the first floor. The walls had a red wallpaper, kind of on the dark side, and there were brown borders.

"Impressive..."Suichi said wide-eyed.

"Umm, my rooms this way, I think,"Kiane said in a nervous voice.

He walked over to one of the doors to the left, the other three followed.

"Does he seem kind of different since we got here?"Ryo whispered to Suichi as they walked down the halls.

"Yeah kind of,"Suichi replied.

They walked up and down hallways for at least half an hour until they came to a dead end.

"Is that a map?"Ryo asked in shock, as he pointed up to a map that was hanging on the wall at the dead end.

Kiane nodded then looked back over. Ryo was looking at the map, but it was confusing and he felt more lost after looking at it. _Hmm we're here and we came from here or was it here? _Ryo thought to himself. He looked around and realized the others left. He began to look around turning his head fast both left and right.

"Hello?"Ryo asked to no one.

He paused and only heard an echo. He had a puzzled looked on his face for a second and began to grin.

"Echo!"Ryo shouted and he listened to the echo that was repeated over and over.

"If I had a dollar I would buy a monkey!"Ryo shouted with a grin.

He paused and heard nothing.

"I didn't break the echo did I?"Ryo asked going wide-eyed.

He heard laughing from a deep voice then someone walked from around the corner. He was short and kind of plump. He had on brown shorts, and an explorer's vest, with a white shirt underneath it. He had on brown shoes that came to his ankles and a brown hat with yellow and red feathers coming from it. He had short brown hair and long brown mustache that went over his mouth.

"Hey there kid, need some help?"the man asked.

His mustache was moving but Ryo still couldn't see a mouth.

"Who are you?"Ryo asked staring blankly at the man who drinking from his canteen which was on his waist.

"I am an explorer of the unknown, the mountain man of houses, I am-"the man stopped as an alarm went off. He pressed a button on his watch,"Seems I have to be off now, my apologies."

The man walked over through a door. Ryo ran up behind him and opened the door, but there was nothing, it was a closet. He stepped inside and looked around, but found nothing. He walked out and closed the door, then stared blankly for a few moments and looked around. He sighed and went to the corner where the man popped out of.

"Can't be late!" Ryo heard a voice come from nowhere.

A man in a suit of armor jumped out of one the doors ahead. Ryo jumped back in shock and began to look around.

"This way noble steed!"the man in armor shouted as he jumped on a horse that began to run towards Ryo.

Ryo began to scream as the horse approached him and the next thing he knew he was being held as the horse ran through the halls. The man dropped Ryo behind him on the horse, and Ryo had no choice but to hold on.

"Where are we going?"Ryo asked turning white and going wide-eyed as they ran in what seemed like random directions through random hallways.

"We quest yonder upon thee jousting arena, young squire," the man said lifting his helm guard.

"You're the same guy from before."Ryo said almost losing his grip.

"Sir Sumabi!"he shouted.

The horse paused and jumped through a door, which was actually made to swing open to the sides. The horse stopped and Ryo began to tilt. He was pale and not moving. 'Sir Sumabi' had left the horse and walked past a curtain. Ryo was still sitting slightly tilted on the horse.

"Hey kiddo!" Mr.Samubi's voice rang out from the other side of the curtain.

Ryo fell off the horse now and began to crawl, while shaking, to the curtain and popped his head out. They were in what looked like a tennis court. To the right was a set of stairs leading up to the back porch. Ryo continued to crawl out and stood up, with his legs badly rattling. Kiane was sitting at a table with Suichi and Dylan.

"There's Ryo, looks like I owe you five dollars,"Suichi said pulling out his wallet.

"Are these your friends, Kiane?"Mr. Sumabi asked walking over taking off his helmet.

"Yep this one is Suichi and that's Dylan, we kind of lost the third one though,"Kiane said pointing at Suichi and Dylan who waved at Mr. Sumabi.

"I think I found him then,"Mr. Sumabi replied with a chuckled.

He patted Ryo on the back and knocked him down as soon as he got over to where they were.

"How did you know Ryo would run into Kiane's dad?"Suichi asked as he handed Dylan the five dollar bill.

"It's Ryo, do you have to ask?"Dylan answered putting the five in his pocket.

Ryo walked over to the table and sat down in one of the chairs.

"So your name is Ryo? A fine name indeed and a fine lad at that!"Mr. Sumabi said in a grand voice.

"You didn't scare him too badly did you dad?"Kiane asked blinking a few times at Ryo was huddled in his chair, rocking back and forth.

"Not at all, most people would have ran, but he was brave enough to stand up to the horse which was running towards him,"Mr. Sumabi said with a laugh.

"Don't confuse bravery and paralyzing fear..."Suichi said with a sweatdrop as he looked over at Ryo.

"Not moving beds, motionless beanbag chairs,"Ryo was naming off several things to help him get over the fear.

"Well I must be off twas a merry time meeting thine comrades,"Mr. Sumabi said putting his helmet back on and running back over to the spot where the horse was standing.

They watched as he tried to jump on the horse, only to find the horse jolt forward making Mr. Sumabi land on the ground. The horse ran further back into the field that was behind their house, being chased by Mr. Sumabi who was surprisingly agile. A silence followed as Mr. Sumabi and the horse left the view.

"Now we can go to my room,"Kiane said hopping out of the chair and walking over to a ladder.

Ryo, who had recovered now, was looking at Suichi and Dylan thinking they knew what was going on. Suichi shrugged and Dylan walked over towards Kiane who placed the ladder against the balcony on the second floor.

"This is the easiest way, if you go through the house then you'll probably get lost,"Kiane said in a normal voice, like it was no big deal.

Ryo looked back over to the the field where Mr. Sumabi was and shivered at the thought of having to go through that again. He turned around and climbed up, the others were already on the balcony. They walked in and began to look around Kiane's room. It was painted light blue and quite large. It had a king size bed in the middle of one wall and a large armiour to the left of the bed. On the other side of the bed was a large chest filled with different toys. There was a large plasma screen TV taking up the wall on the opposite side then in the corner. To the left of where they came in was a table with four different computers all with "The World" headset sitting on them. The carpet was a calm white color.

"I can't believe they took "The World" down for the day, we could be playing right now..."Ryo said, then followed with a sigh.

"Huh? What are you talking about?"Kiane asked looking back.

"I got a message saying "The World" was going to be closed down,"Ryo responded.

"Only the Theta server. You should have read closer,"Suichi said.

"He was so excited to play he must have quickly read the e-mail and thought it meant the whole thing and not just Theta,"Dylan replied with one hand rubbing his chin.

"How did you know that?"Ryo asked looking over.

There was a silence as everyone looked over at Dylan.

"Who's up for go-carts?"Mr. Sumabi asked driving through Kiane's doors in a go-cart. Now he was wearing racing suit and helmet.

"Did you get Coco?"Kiane asked.

"I gave up on the horse and decided to get some horse power!"Mr. Sumabi said with a laugh.

He did a U-turn and drove back out of the room.

"Does anyone else realize no marks are ever left on the floor?"Ryo asked, staring at the ground which seemed to be sparkling clean despite the fact a go-kart just rode over it.

"The floor is eleterkit and takes any dirt and empties it elsewhere,"Kiane said walking out to the balcony and climbing down.

"Eleterkit?"Ryo asked walking out onto the balcony.

"I think he means electrical,"Suichi said climbing down.

Ryo followed and Dylan was last. They got down back to the ground and followed Kiane around the tennis court. They came around the corner and saw the go-kart track then a garage with go-karts lined up. They saw a go-cart facing a pile of tires and Mr. Sumabi was hanging out the side.

"Do you really thin-"Kiane began, only to get interrupted.

"Mr. Sumabi?" Ryo ran over.

"...think they'll fall for that?"Kiane finished.

Ryo got over to Mr. Sumabi who grabbed Ryo's leg. Ryo let out a scream, then paused as he realized it was a trick.

"A fine lad indeed!"Mr. Sumabi said walking over to Kiane, Dylan, and Suichi.

Ryo sighed and checked to make sure his heart was still beating. Mr. Sumabi pointed over the go-karts to show they could go choose one.

"Don't go,"Kiane said reaching out one hand.

The three were walking over and fell into a trap door, they slid down and it was too dark to see anything. They saw a light and came flying out of the tunnel and landed in a pool. Ryo looked up and saw Kiane looking down from over a ledge.

"I tried to warn you guys,"Kiane shouted.

They heard Mr. Sumabi laughing and saw him jump off the ledge which was about 15 feet above the pool. Suichi ducked under the water, while Ryo tried to swim away, but made no progress. Mr. Sumabi landed and caused a large splash to occur which pushed Ryo to the edge. Suichi came back up, breathing heavily. Dylan was still in the same spot, only now he was more soaked.

"Mr. Sumabi! It's time for your meeting,"they heard a voice coming from one of the sides of the pool. There was a woman in a purple skirt and shirt, she had on a pair of sunglasses and her hair was blond and came down to her shoulders. She was holding what looked like clipboard and in another hand what looked like an electronic organizer.

"Fine, fine I'm coming,"Mr. Sumabi said swimming over and climbing out of the water,"Well have fun boys I'm off for now."Mr. Sumabi said as he pulled out a controller of some kind.

He pressed a button and was dressed in a business suit. He began to walk away hands in his pockets as they left.

"Sorry about that Suichi and Dylan,"Kiane said finally getting down.

He was rubbing the back of his head with one hand and had a nervous smile on his face. The three were now out of the pool drying themselves off.

"Hey brat, aren't you forgetting someone?"Ryo said punching Kiane in the head.

"Yeah, but don't worry she'll be fine. Coco is a smart horse,"Kiane replied.

"Bah, lousy brat,"Ryo said with a vein pulsing out of his head.

"So my dad will busy for the rest of the day, lets get something to eat and play "The World" afterwards,"Kiane said as they walked up to the back porch.

"Sounds good to me,"Suichi said.

He sneezed and bent over slightly. They climbed up the ladder and walked back into Kiane's room.

"What does everyone want?"Kiane asked.

He walked over and picked up a phone next to his bed.

"I'll have...what can I get?"Ryo began.

"Anything, the kitchen people can make what ever you want,"Kiane replied.

Ryo's mouth began to water as he began to think of all the possibilities.

"I'll have a BLT, haven't had one in a while,"Suichi said, with one finger on his chin.

He was looking up towards the roof.

"Chicken teriyaki and some rice."Dylan said looking over.

Kiane nodded.

"I could get a philly cheese stake, or maybe a pizza. What do I want, a spicy chicken sandwich, no spicy turkey, maybe barbecue ribs. No I know I'll have some beef stew, wait no. I'll have spaghetti, wait, even better."Ryo was rambling on,"I got it Lasagna!"Ryo said his fist in his hand.

Kiane pressed a button on his phone.

"Hello...Yeah I'm calling for lunch...Mmhmm...Umm a BLT,chicken teriyaki, rice, lasagna, and my usual...For drinks? I don't know,"Kiane was saying on the phone. He looked over towards the table on the balcony.

"What do you guys want to drink?"

"Sprite,"Ryo cheered.

"Milk maybe?"Suichi replied.

"Herbal tea,"Dylan said quietly.

"Herbal tea?"Ryo asked looking over.

"I like tea..."Dylan replied looking over at Ryo.

"Okay for drinks: Milk, Sprite, herbal tea, and for me maybe some herbal tea also,"Kiane said on the phone,"Thanks."

Kiane put the phone back down.

"What is your usual anyways?"Ryo asked as Kiane got up into one of the chairs.

"Is herbal tea good?"Kiane asked Dylan who was looking off towards the field in the back.

"I asked you a question, brat,"Ryo said.

"Why should I tell you, monster?"Kiane said sticking his tounge out.

"Why I ou-"Ryo began but was cut off.

"Don-"Suichi was cut off shortly afterwards.

"Don't pick on little kids,"Ryo imitated afterwards.

Kiane suddenly jumped in his chair after saying ow.

"He kicked me!"Kiane said pointing at Ryo.

Ryo was leaning back in his chair with his arms behind his head, whistling innocently. Kiane sniffed and began to get teary eyed.

"I hardly tried, what are you crying about brat?"Ryo said one eye open looking over at Kiane.

"See, see!"Kiane shouted standing in his chair now.

There was a knock on the door and Jenning walked in with a cart. He pushed it over to the balcony table. It had four different plates with a metal cover on it. He put them on the table one by one and took off the top.

"Chicken teriyaki,"he said.

Dylan pulled it closer and picked up the fork and knife. He pulled out Ryo and Suichi's next.

"This looks good,"Ryo said beginning to eat his lasagna.

"And the last one for Master Kiane,"Jenning said as he put the last one on the table, he pulled of the cover revealing a bowl of applesauce.

"That's your usual?"Ryo said, his mouth half full with food.

"Applesauce is good, but you wouldn't know would you monster?"Kiane replied getting his spoon.

Jenning put the drinks in the middle of the table and walked back out with the cart.

"This is very good,"Dylan said as he began to eat his meal.

"I agree,"Suichi said opening his mouth wide to take a bite of the BLT.

They finished the meal shortly afterwards, the drinks were finished awhile ago, and they walked over to the computers. The Altimit System started up and since there was nothing new they logged on.

Coinchii appeared in Mac Anu just after Demon. Mohi and Kain came in afterwards.

"Hey you are the guys from before,"they heard a familiar voice from behind them. They turned around and saw Cuoka on the steps.

"It's the kill stealer,"Kain said folding his arms,"Here to steal more victories from us?"

Demon walked over by the person and began to analyze him.

"Yeah, that event was steal, for me anyways,"Cuoka said folding his arms, with a proud grin on his face.

"Literally,"Mohi added.

"Now, my fans, what are you doing here?"Cuoka said looking at the group.

"I know you aren't talking to us,"Coinchii said with a sweatdrop going down is head.

Kain nodded in agreement.

"We were planning on going to a dungeon,"Demon said walking over to save his game.

"And you need my assistance, I get it,"Cuoka said.

Ryo waved for Kain and Mohi to follow him as he began to sneak away from Cuoka who had his eyes closed. After getting down the stairs they began to make a run for it and crossed over the bridge.

"Down here,"Mohi said as he crouched behind a pile of crates.

"That guy's such a loser,"Kain said looking around the corner.

"I agree with the brat for once,"Coinchii said peeking over the boxes as well.

Cuoka was scratching his head. He then shrugged and warped away.

"That was close,"Mohi said walking back over to the bridge.

"Finally I can get my revenge now,"they looked over as they heard a voice.

"It's Hinonvia!"Coinchii said waving at Hinoja who was running over from the other side of the bridge.

"My names Hinoja not Hinavia!"Hinoja shouted with a vein pulsing from his head.

He pulled out his sword and pointed the tips at Coinchii,"Now I can get my revenge."

"Actually he said Hinonvia,"Demon said looking over.

"That's not the point!"Hinoja shouted with a sweatdrop going down his head.

"What about revenge now?"Coinchii asked scratching his head.

"Huh, I'm going to get revenge since you cheap shotted me on the gruntyback competition."

"I won fair and square,"Coinchii said sticking his tounge out.

Hinoja screamed and put his sword behind his head getting ready to slash down. There was a thud as it went lower.

"Hey jerk! you're asking for it!"they heard a voice coming behind from Hinoja.

He turned around everyone saw a short wavemaster. She was about a foot shorter then Coinchii. She wore a white robe with a black lining with symbols in it. Her hair was white and came down to her mid back. She had to bains that were long enough to come level to her chin.

"Watch what you're doing with that sword, you over muscled thick headed moron!"

"I'm in the middle of something squirt,"Hinoja replied bending down to come eye level to the wavemaster.

"Why you..."she had a vein coming out of her head and she whacked Hinoja in the head with her staff."I'll start something else then!"

Coinchii, Mohi, Demon, and Kain looked on wide-eyed, as the wavemaster girl kept hitting Hinoja with staff. He was knocked over from the first hit and was on the ground while the wavemaster was jumping around using the staff as a hammer as she kept pummeling him.

"I don't hear anymore grunting,"Mohi said blinking.

The wavemaster girl stopped and looked at Hinoja. She hit him again with the staff then put it back to her side.

"He's twitching,"her face changed as though it was actually dead person.

She began to take a few steps back until she bumped into Cuoka.

"We can't get a break,"Coinchii grumbled.

"When did you get here?"Mohi asked.

"When this little snow bunny here was hitting that guy,"Cuoka said pointing at Hinoja who was still twitching.

The wavemaster blushed and began looking away.

"You don't wanna fall for that guy,"Mohi said resting his staff on his shoulder.

"That guy's a moron,"Kain added.

"Who is he?"the wavemaster asked upon the comments.

"I am...the great and only Cuoka!"he said with on foot on the railing.

His hand was once again pointing to nothing in particular in the sky.

"Now what's your name, my little snow bunny?"

"I'm Gyuni,"she replied, stepping back.

"I'm Coinchii and they're Mohi, Demon, and Kain,"Coinchii said pointing the other three.

Demon seemed to be spaced out staring into space, Kain was looking into the water rocking his head back and forth, and Mohi was poking Hinoja now, since he still wasn't doing anything more than twitching.

"We should trade member address we could do a dungeon,"she said winking.

After trading member addresses they had to split up.

"We should do two different dungeons so we don't lose out on too much experience,"Demon said as they approached the stairs.

"Me, Kain, Cuoka, Mohi, Gyuni, and Demon. So who's going with who?"Coinchii asked.

"I want to go with the snow bunny,"Cuoka said stepping over Gyuni about to put his arm around her.

Mohi grabbed his arm before he could though.

"Yeah those two are going in a different party,"Mohi said stepping in between the two.

"I want to go in the same party as her,"Kain said raising his hand in the air.

"If Coinchii is in the party with Cuoka I can see a fight breaking out, so then how about this then,"Mohi began,"Kain, Gyuni, and Coinchii in one party, then in the other party me, Demon, and Cuoka."

"I'm fine with it,"Demon commented.

"Fine, fine what my fans want is what my fans get,"Cuoka said waving his hands.

Everyone else had a sweatdrop fall down there head, but formed their parties.

"Good luck,"Coinchii said with a smile on his face.

He was relieved he didn't have Cuoka in his party.

"Bye my darling snow bunny,"Cuoka said blowing a kiss to Gyuni.

They warped away as Mohi hit Cuoka in the back of the head with his staff. Coinchii's party turned to each other now.

"Anyone have a good map?"Kain asked.

"I think I may know one,"Gyuni said.

They turned to the Chaos Gate,"Delta Great Agonizing Deep Canyon!"she shouted raising her staff.

"Wait you!" Coinchii turned around at the last second and saw Hinoja running back over, but they had warped away as he reached the steps.

They appeared at the bottom of a canyon. To their right was a rushing river a bit further down was a whirlpool. To the left was a steep cliff, they looked up and saw some vultures flying around the sky. The dirt was a brown-ish red-ish color and was like clay in some ways. They heard some noise coming from behind and turned around.

"That's a Giant Moth isn't it?"Kain asked pulling out his daggers. Gyuni nodded and aimed her staff towards it.

"It's all red though,"Coinchii said running forward.

He slashed downwards but the monster began began flapping its wings harder and a vortex began to form. Coinchii began to spin around and was tossed back a bit.

"You okay, monster?" Kain said as he jumped at the monster's body get a slash on one of the wings.

"It's probably red because of the map. Repth!"Gyuni explained then healed Coinchii.

He got back up and began running forward with his weapon ready to get a slash on the moth.

"Staccato!"Kain shouted.

Coinchii looked over and saw Kain jumping in a circle with electrical sparks coming off. The monster was hit multiple times and fell to the ground. It turned gray and blew away in the dust.

"What was that?"Coinchii asked, as the group now resumed walking along the river in search of the dungeon.

"What was what?"Gyuni asked.

"That thing Kain used,"Coinchii replied pointing at Kain.

"Staccato?"Kain asked clueless.

"Yeah, that."

"It's an attack. I figured even you would know that monster,"Kain said with his arms behind his head.

"I'm new so sue me,"Coinchii replied,"I've only been playing for 10 days."

Gyuni began to giggle and Coinchii looked over puzzled.

"You're still a newbie that's so cute, little Coinchii,"she replied holding her stomach now laughing.

"The monster leveled up pretty fast but I bet Mohi and Demon helped didn't they?"Kain asked.

"Yeah but it doesn't matter brat,"Coinchii said.

Gyuni had stopped laughing finally and walked over by the two.

"Are you two brothers in real life?"Gyuni asked looking at both of them.

"Like I'd be his brother!"both of them shouted at the same time they were also pointing at each other.

Gyuni tried to hold it in but failed horribly and fell on the ground laughing. She forced herself to stop after about a minute but still had the giggles over the timing.

"There it is!"Coinchii said pointing across the river.

There was a small cave entrance, but according to the map that was the dungeon.

"How do we get across though, monster?"Kain asked. They were close to the whirlpool and the entrance was on the other side of the river. They stared for a few moments unable to come up with anything.

"What spells do you have Gyuni?"Coinchii asked sitting against the cliff now.

Kain was throwing rocks into the river and watched as they would suddenly disappear beneath the aggressive rapids.

"Only support ones. Repth, La Repth, Rip Maen for example,"Gyuni explained.

"Maybe we could run and jump,"Coinchii said once again looking at the rushing waters.

"You go first so that way neither me or Gyuni die, monster,"Kain said pushing over a boulder into the river.

It slipped in and got a few feet down towards the whirlpool before it hit the bottom of the river. It was mostly covered but you could still see the top. It provided a bridge for the first half of the river.

"We could run and jump that at least,"Coinchii said walking down to the boulder.

He took a few steps away then began to run to the boulder. He hopped a bit to plant his foot on the boulder then got about two running steps before he had to jump off. He cleared the jump easily and landed on the other side. He turned around and saw Kain taking the last step before he would have to jump. He made it easily also. Gyuni ran and tripped over the small bump from the boulder but caught herself and forced a jump. She ended up getting in a front flip then rolled on the ground a few times. She sat up and wiped the dirt off her robe then they went back up to the dungeon. They gathered around the entrance and prepared to go inside but suddenly two red half-bird, half-woman monsters flew out.

"Those are Chicken Hands," Kain said pulling out his daggers again.

Coinchii had his sword out and slashed at the first Chicken Hand but it flew a bit higher and dodged Coinchii.

"Vak Rom!"Gyuni shouted the two Chicken Hands were suddenly engulfed a flaming tornado.

They fell to the ground after the attack and turned gray the blew away into dust.

"I thought you said you only have support magic,"Coinchii said putting away his weapon.

"I carry around scrolls also,"Gyuni said walking back to the cave opening. They walked inside and continued down the dungeon.

They reached the 4th level and went into the next room. The portal faded; three Goblin and two Magical Goblins appeared.

"Heh, a tiki styled Goblin,"Coinchii said pointing to the Magical Goblin.

"Watch out it's a caster,"Kain said jumping at the first goblin getting in a few slashes.

Coinchii pulled out his sword and ran towards one of the Magical Goblins. He got in two attacks and it died quickly.

"My last scroll,"Gyuni said going through her bag.

She pulled out another scroll and it began to glow yellow.

"Rai Kruz!"lightning balls appeared and converged on the other goblin.

Kain ran over and finished off the last Goblin.

"Why are there so many monsters in this dungeon?"Coinchii asked as Gyuni cast La Repth once again.

"Not sure, but the treasure room is one room over,"Kain said opening up a blue chest and it blew up. Coinchii began jumped back startled. The smoke began to clear and Kain had three HP left.  
"Repth!"Gyuni said with a sweatdrop going down her head.  
"What just happened?"Coinchii asked not that he mind seeing Kain surprised.

"I forgot to use a Fortune Wire,"Kain said rubbing the back of his head.  
"You managed to get past my army of monster, impressive,"they heard a voice coming out of nowhere.  
"You say that Gyuni?"Coinchii asked looking over his shoulder.

Gyuni shook her head. There was a red glow and woman appeared. She had short red spiky hair and was a bit taller then Coinchii. She wore what looked like a red bathrobe on which was undone and beneath it was midriff red shirt and a pair of red pants which turned to orange at the bottom. Her eyes were an orange red-ish mix.

"That seems familiar,"Coinchii said dropping his weapon some.

"That's so rude, when a woman works hard making monsters for some lousy players to come and wipe them all out,"she said with her arms folding, her head was looking downwards but her eyes were going up still watching the three.

"Who are you?"Kain asked blinking.

"Pyro, but it doesn't matter to you,"she said.

She raised her hand it began to glow. The glow had become a swirl and two dogs jumped out. They had three heads each and were on fire.

"You're one of the hackers like Aqua and Jade aren't you!"Coinchii demanded.

He raised his weapon again.

"So you know of them? No matter. Get them my Hell Hounds!"Pyro shouted pointing at the party.

She warped away in a red glow leaving Gyuni, Kain, Coinchii, and the two Hell Hounds. The first one snarled and ran at Coinchii who rolled over to the side to dodged it. Coinchii quickly got on his feet and got a hit on the Hell Hound. It stumbled back some but recovered quickly and bit Coinchii's arm then tossed him into the wall. He bounced off and landed on the ground.

"Repth!"Gyuni shouted.

The other Hell Hound which was fighting Kain turned it's attention and ran at Gyuni. The first Hell Hound was running at Coinchii again who brought his sword over and caught the monster's leg tripping it. Coinchii jumped over the Hell Hound and ran to save Gyuni who was now cornered. He jumped and brought his sword down knocking the monster over. It took a step forward from the impact then fell to the ground. After the Hell Hound disappeared Coinchii turned around to see Kain get head butted and knocked down. He had little HP left. Coinchii pulled out a healing drink and used it on Kain who dodged to the side of the Hell Hound's next attack. The three quickly regrouped and the Hell Hound became hesitant. Coinchii and Kain attacked at the same time and the triple slash had knocked the monster to the ground where it died shortly afterwards.

"What was that all about?"Kain asked.

"I need to report to AnakinseZ,"Coinchii said quickly using a Sprite Ocarina.

He sent a message to AnakinseZ then gated out to town.

"What's the big idea? We almost had the Gott Statue!"Gyuni was shouting while she began to hit Coinchii with her staff.

She finished as AnakinseZ appeared by the Chaos Gate. Coinchii sat up rubbing the bump on his head then stood up.

"You found information on another one of those hackers?"AnakinseZ asked afterwards.

Coinchii saluted which caused AnakinseZ to fall over again.

"It seems another member, Pyro, has the ability to create more monsters. Their color is usually red though, which is the color she mostly is,"Coinchii said saluting again.

AnakinseZ sighed.

"Is her character different than a normal players? Like something that a player wouldn't able to create?"AnakinseZ asked with one hand on his chin.

Coinchii nodded.

"And the warp was the same?"

Coinchii nodded again.

"Good, thanks."

Kain walked over now and pulled on Coinchii's sleeve.

"We have to go now. I'll take you guys back in the limo,"Kain said, logging out.

Coinchii nodded to Gyuni and AnakinseZ then logged out also.

Ryo pulled off his VR Headset to find Suichi and Dylan waiting at the door.

"Next time you go to a party with Cuoka. That guy drove me nuts,"Suichi said with a vein pulsing out of his head.

"Come on it's almost five,"Kiane said running out onto the balcony,"Remember go that way and you'll probably get lost."

The three looked at each other then walked out to the balcony to leave.

"So are you sure the warp is like the two from before?"Skyld asked in a spot somewhere in Mac Anu.  
"Coinchii said this Pyro girl was like Jade's and Jade's was just like the two from that incident,"AnakinseZ responded.

"They have no points from where they log in and they have no character data,"Momiri said kicking at the ground.

"These aren't the same ones from before?"there was a sudden voice and Zero had jumped down from the top of a roof.

"No these are women and there has yet to be a white one,"Skyld said looking over.

"Interesting, and this Coinchii kid is the one who keeps finding them,"Zero said leaning over to AnakinseZ.

"You implying something?"Momiri asked as she turned her head over towards him.

"Coinchii is too child-ish, no way he's behind it. I can tell from how he acts also no way he could organize this,"AnakinseZ responded.

"I feel insulted for some reason,"Ryo said, looking out the window of the limo.

"Why?"Suichi asked, blinking over to him.

"Not quite sure,"Ryo shrugged.

"I'm not saying that he's behind this, but there may be a chance he's a target for some reason,"Zero said walking over to Skyld.

"His character is completely legit, he has nothing out of the ordinary, and his character model is normal as well,"Momiri said, her eyes following Zero.  
"So was...well you know who,"Zero said with a sly grin.

The other three paused for a moment.

"This is different,"Skyld said grabbing Zero's collar.

"Why so violent suddenly?"Zero asked still grinning.

"He's right, hurting him would accomplish nothing. CC Corp. has gotten little data also, nothing of use anyways, whatever is going on takes place completely in "The World". Zero is good gathering information, we'll need him."

"Thank you, Game Administrator," Zero emphasized 'administrator'.

Momiri turned her head towards the ground then look back over at Zero.

"Will please stop calling me that?"Momiri asked.

Her face showed displeasure mixed with insult.

"Fine, fine, but you people should know he was one of the few I respect, this kid seems brainless, nothing to respect. If I help out I better get something in return. Think about it,"Zero said he warped away afterwards.

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Questions, comments, advice, reviews, suggest, so on welcome. I'm pretty sure on average the chapters from here cover about five computer pages, so roughly 10-ish pages of a book? And I'll digress for now, I'll try to keep updating every weekend until the chapters posted catch up with the chapters I've done.

Next Chapter's-  
Plot:First half isn't plot-related, but the second half is  
Importance:Important chapter  
Things to look forward to:New enemy, big plot progression  
Balance:Half and half, but the important part is in "The World"


	10. Chapter 10:Crime and Punishment

Another weekend another chapter. I believe this is one of my longest chapters(almost breaking 10,000 words and around eight or nine computer pages) As I said in the last chapter's ending notes, a new enemy is introduced, some minor characters, and the plot makes a good amount of progression here. Enjoy.

* * *

"Coinchii! Pay attention to the board!"Mrs.Lavendeur snapped as Ryo zoned out again.

"I already said it's Kuini-aww forget it,"Ryo sighed looking towards Mrs.Lavendeur.

"I'll ask someone else then...Mohi. In the story why was Mildrow doomed from the start?"Mrs.Lavendeur asked.

It was the english lesson and they were reading a book called Mildrow Down Low. Mrs.Lavendeur was walking up and down the rows of chairs.

"Because the author made it that way?"Suichi replied a smirk.

Mrs.Lavendeur cleared her throat and pushed her glasses closer to her face.

"Okay, it was because he always figured something bad would happen and his mind was stuck in a vortex making his thoughts come true, at least in his eyes. In everyone else's eyes he was a hero."

"Very good,"Mrs.Lavendeur said,"Now the ne-"

She was interrupted by a knock on the door. She walked over and opened it up and it was the principal. Ryo looked over and tried to make out what he was saying, but he couldn't make out anything at all. Mrs.Lavendeur nodded and turned around.

"Joseph, please watch after the class, and begin reading the next section, I'll send a substitute shortly,"Mrs.Lavendeur said.

She walked out and closed the door behind her.

"What was that all about?"Ryo asked as the class began cheering.

"Not sure, probably something important to get Mrs.Lavendeur away without waiting for a substitute,"

Suichi said working on another drawing.

"Oww! Who the hell shot me with a tweeter!"the two heard a girl shout.

Ryo looked over and saw another one of the students getting pummeled by the girl. Ryo gulped and looked over at Suichi who was occupied with his drawing.

"Fight fight fight!"everyone began chanting as the student was trying to crawl away from the enraged girl.

"That sounds like something you would be doing Ryo, over there chanting them on,"Suichi said.

There was a silence and Suichi looked over at Ryo's seat, which was empty.

"Yeah kick his ass! Show no mercy!"Ryo was shouting as he crawled over top of people.

"Break it up now!"there was a voice as the door slammed open.

Everyone instantly froze and turned around. There was a man in a blue button up shirt and blue dress pants. He had neat black hair, combed back and a pretty big beard. He was tall and looked like he was buff under his cloths. Everyone began to scatter and returned to their seats.

"Who are you?"asked one boy from the side of the classroom opposite of Ryo.

"I'm here to take the place of your teacher while she's absent. I give no warnings; leave your seat you're written up, talk you're written up, pass notes you're written up. The only things you can do are listen to me and breath. Got it?"he said in a stern voice as he overlooked the class as though they were an army about to go to war.

"I asked a question do you get it?"his voice was more threatening this time.

"Yes sir,"someone said in a small voice.

"Ah, what's your name?"the guy said sounding somewhat kind.

"Tokon,"the kid replied weakly.

"Thank you,"he replied as he pulled out a piece of paper.

Ryo stretched his neck some to see what was going on and it looked like this Tokon kid was getting written up.

"Wow this guy is harsh,"Ryo said in shock.

"Who said that?"he asked looking up from the write-up.

Ryo instantly shrunk back down.

"Ryo Kuinichi?"he asked again walking over.

Ryo was getting nervous and was beginning to shake. _This guy is gonna kill me_ he began to think as he stopped by his desk.

"I'm friends with your dad! How's the old man been doing?"he suddenly said in a normal voice.

Ryo fell over in his chair with a sweatdrop.

"Umm fine sir?"Ryo said in a weak voice.

"I thought you looked familiar. Your dad and I will have to catch up some time. Meanwhile I have to write you up now,"he said pulling out another write up. His face was cheerful still.

Ryo's jaw dropped.

"Are you trying to get us written up?"he yelled standing up.

Everyone looked over. The substitute continued over to his seat and just looked over at the class once he finished the write-ups. The bell rang for lunch in a few minutes and everyone ran out of the classroom.

"That good for nothing old bastard, I can't stand him I'd rather have seven or eight of that brat tied to me then this guy!"Ryo said grabbing his own hair.

"He's the worst sub ever..."Suichi replied with a sweatdrop, his eye was twitching slightly.

"What's going on?"Dylan asked as he sat against the tree.

"I have detention and it wasn't my fault this time,"Ryo said burying his face in his backpack.

"This substitute is harsh,"Suichi said pulling out his lunch.

"Ryo!"Sakura called out from behind," I just got back earlier, and look what you got in your mail!"

Ryo looked over and Sakura was holding a plushie of his character Coinchii and a Skyld Master Knight plushie which must have arrived earlier.

"Hi Sakura..."Ryo replied with a sigh.

Dylan pulled out some rice which was in his lunch box.

"I'll keep this one," she said holding up the plushie of his character, Coinchii.

"Where's the Skyld one?"Ryo asked in a less then excited voice.

Sakura glomped Ryo from the behind and dropped the plushie in his lap. It was like Skyld only it seemed more chibi. There was also a small plastic sheath tied to the Skyld plushie's waist.

"What are you two doing?"a familiar voice called.

Ryo and Suichi looked as though they were about to run.

"Nothing sir,"Ryo replied wide eyed,"Please don't kill me."

"Luckily you aren't in the classroom I can't write you up this time, but I have my eyes on you Kuinichi,"he replied walking away,"And make sure you stay after school for detention!"

"What did you do this time?"Sakura asked, still holding onto Ryo from behind.

"It wasn't me this time, he made me get written up,"Ryo replied.

"There's no way I'm going back to class..."Suichi began,"Dylan punch me in the stomach!"

"What?"Dylan asked looking over.

"Punch me so I don't have to go back."

"Is he really that bad?"Dylan asked eyes becoming wide.

"He's punching me first!"Ryo replied as he jumped and pushed Suichi out of the way.

There was a cloud of dust as the two fought over who would get punched by Dylan and leave school. The bell rang and the two stopped. Suichi's hand was holding one of Ryo's wrists while his other hand was pushing down on Ryo's head. Ryo's hands were holding onto to Suichi's leg and he was trying to bite at it before the pause. The looked at each other for a second and a silence followed.

"See you guys,"Dylan said as he sat up and walked away.

"I'll be on "The World" later, Ryo,"Sakura said also leaving.

The two were still staring at each other and finally stood back up normally.

"We can solve this easily,"Suichi said putting his hands in his pocket.

He had scuff marks all over his cloths and looked as though he had been punched in the side of his face.

"Huh?"Ryo asked tilting is head.

Ryo's hair was sticking up in random places. His face had random dirt marks and his cloths were scuffed as well.

"You have detention so you have to stay,"Suichi replied.

"That isn't fair!"Ryo yelled.

"Kuinichi and Mohi! Get to class now!"the substitute shouted.

The two gulped and obeyed.

Instead of teaching for the rest of the day the substitute had everyone sit at there desk for the three remaining hours of school. The bell finally rang and everyone left except Ryo, Tokon, and the girl from before. Tokon had short brown hair that was combed down to the side, he had a brown eyes that seemed to have a red-ish tint. He had on a pair of tan cargo pants and blue t-shirt.  
The other girl was named Chelsy. She had blond hair in that came to her shoulders and was tied back in a ponytail. She on a black t-shirt that had writing that said 'Before you talk bad about someone, walk a mile in their shoes. Then you'll be a mile away from them and you have their shoes.' Beneath the writing was a pair of red shoes. She had on baggy black pants and boots that came to her shins.

"The three trouble makers,"the substitute said.

His hands were folded over each other, looking at the three. There was a silence before he finally stood up.

"Since you three like to misbehave I'm going to have to clean your act by cleaning the hallways. Follow me."

The three nodded and followed the substitute as they walked to the janitor's closet. He pulled out three mops, three buckets, three sponges, three rags, and some kind of cleaning soap, which Ryo guessed was for the the mops. He put everything down and pulled out a plunger and a hammer and handed them to Ryo.

"You are going to remove the dent from that locker,"He said pointing at a locker that was in the intersection of this hallway and the hallway where Mrs.Lavendeur's classroom was.

"Hey that's the locker I dented in chapter one!"Ryo said in surprise,"I thought that would be fixed by now. Lousy author had this planned I bet."

"What did you say Kuinichi?"the substitute asked leering behind Ryo.

"Nothing sir,"Ryo replied shivers running up his spine.

"Get to work I'll bring you your mop and pale later,"the substitute said carrying Ryo's stuff.

Tokon and Chelsy followed. Ryo sighed and walked over to the locker.

"First we have to open it,"Ryo said.

He poked the locker door and it creaked open.

"That was easier then I thought."

He took the plunger and put it on the outside around the dent then took the hammer on the other side and began lightly hitting the inside of the locker door while pulling on the outside with the plunger's suction. After about 10 minutes or so the locker looked almost normal and the substitute had returned with Ryo's supplies.

"Clean the outside of the lockers, the floors, and walls then you can go. You only have to do these two hallways since the others are doing the rest,"the substitute said.

Ryo sighed and put the mop in the sudsy liquid.

"You don't have to clean, no ones here run away,"a gritty voice said from Ryo's shoulder.

He looked over and saw a little devil.

"This is just like the cartoons,"Ryo said blinking,"Where's the angel one?"  
"You were wrongly punished. Make a run for it Ryo, leave those bastards behind,"a small squeaky voice said from his other shoulder.

"Shouldn't you be the one telling me to stay and clean up?"Ryo asked.

He rubbed his eyes and checked his ears to make sure he wasn't going crazy.  
"Pft, screw that."The angel said and folded his arms.

Ryo looked around at the hallways and no one was there. He checked his shoulders again but the devil and angel were gone.  
"This place sucks,"Ryo looked down and saw the Skyld plushie walking over,"Show me this substitute I'll beat him up so we can leave."

"KUINICHI!"Ryo jumped in shock.

He looked around and saw the substitute standing there with his stuff.

"I was daydreaming...Oh,"Ryo said under his breath,"That was weird though."

"Stop mumbling and get to work,"the substitute said standing behind Ryo with his arms folded.

"Yes sir,"Ryo replied grabbing the mop.

The substitute turned around and began to walk away. _Maybe it was a sign? Maybe I should run for it._ Ryo began to think as he finished mopping up the hallway along the lockers. It had taken him 30 minutes to mop the entire hallway and wash lockers. He still had to clean the lockers and then mop the other hallway, plus the walls. He got about half way through cleaning the lockers and looked at his watch. School was released at 3:10 and it was now 4:10. Ryo groaned, but continued.

As he finally finished both hallways he checked his watch it was 5:15 now. He walked outside the school and looked at the mostly empty parking lot.

"In here,"a voice said.

Ryo looked over and saw something rustling in the bushes. He walked over and looked over the top. Tokon and Chelsy were hiding behind the bushes. They looked around and pulled Ryo in.

"You planning on making a run for it too?"Tokon asked.

"Actually, I fini-"Ryo began until he was interrupted.

"Of course he is. That sub is nuts,"Chelsy said looking out of the bushes.

She nodded and began to to crawl along the wall still behind the bushes.

"That's t-"Ryo began, but was interrupted again.

"Quiet!"Chelsy commanded.

They followed the wall as it turned right, and ducked under a few windows until they reached the corner which led around back.

"We're leaving through the woods?"Tokon asked as Chelsy stopped suddenly in front of him.

She nodded and put her finger to her mouth to tell him to be quiet. She poked her head out of the bushes then walked out.

"Let's go,"she said as she began to run to the woods.

Tokon looked around real quick and followed. Ryo had a sweat drop going down his head but followed also. They reached the top of the hill and hid behind some trees.

"Umm guys?"Ryo said as they began to walk to the back of the woods.

"Not now kid,"Chelsy replied.

"But..."  
"We're almost at the end there's a fence up ahead, once we climb that we're free,"she said she had a gleam in her eye.

"I kno-"Ryo still tried talking.

"Quiet, already,"she whispered glaring back at him.

After a few minutes they reached the fence and climbed over.

"That was close, bet you two want to thank me,"Chelsy replied with her arms folded behind her head.

She had a proud grin on her face.

"If you guys payed attention at all the substitute was leaving..."Ryo finally said.

Tokon looked over wide eyed. Chelsy was speechless.

"Ah well what you gonna do?"Tokon said shrugging it off.

"Anyways I'm gonna go home now, I'm hungry," Ryo said.

"Doesn't sound like a bad plan,"Tokon replied.

Tokon waved and began to walk away. Ryo waved then noticed Chelsy was still standing there.

"You okay?"he asked.

Chelsy sighed and drooped down. She mumbled something and began to walk away.

Ryo blinked cluelessly a few times and began walking to his house.

Once home he ate dinner and went up to his bedroom. He had pulled the Skyld Master Knight plushie from his backpack and was now putting it next to the computer monitor. He looked at his computer and started it up. He had 4 e-mails. They were from CC Corp, Sakura, AnakinseZ, and one from someone named Venus. He opened the first one.

"The Theta server is now repaired and available to access, Our apologies on any inconvenience of the two days it was down,"Ryo finished reading it and went to the second one.

"Hey Ryo, meet me at 7:30 you should be done with everything by then, right?"Ryo replied saying he should be able to make it. He scrolled down to the next one from AnakinseZ.

"There will be a group meeting for the Elite Rogue Squadron tonight at 9:00, be logged in and at the Theta server. The meeting is taking place by the grunty farm,"Ryo was curious as to what it was, but figured he would have to wait. He scrolled down to the last one, from this Venus person. He remembered it from somewhere but he couldn't place it exactly.

"In regards to the gruntyback competition; the grunty named Yakeshi in possession of the player Coinchii, has been deemed as being granted unfair advantage because of the fact it is a special grunty. A grunty will be supplied for you when your next gruntyback battle takes place. Use of Yakeshi will get you expelled from the tournament and this will be your only warning,"Ryo finished reading it and groaned.

"I don't even know what Yakeshi does that is different from any other grunty, that's so not cool.."he replied to the message content.

He looked over at the clock on the wall it was a bit past 6:00. He decided to log on for awhile before he would meet Sakura.

Coinchii appeared in Mac Anu and looked around for a few seconds, as he usually did. He walked over the bridge and saw a shop with the end of a staff around a gem that was carved into a large piece of wood. _I wonder if I can get some of those scrolls here, that Gyuni was using_ Coinchii thought as he walked over. There was a small crowd of people, but because of the large heavy axeman in front of Coinchii he couldn't see what was going on. He tried to hear anything and could make out the NPC's voice, or at least he thought it was the NPC. There were also 3 other voices.

"Why is he doing that?"one voice said.

There was a pause as what sounded like the NPC could be heard.

"ell scro- ell scro- ell scro,"the voice kept repeating over and over.

_I gotta see what's going on _Coinchii thought he tapped on the shoulder of the heavy axeman and he turned around.

"You need something?"he replied in a heavy voice.

"See that long arm over there?"Coinchii said pointing to an attractive long arm sitting on the bridge.

The heavy axeman looked over at her then back down to Coinchii.

"Yeah,"he said glancing back over at her.

"She told me to get you and ask you to go over there,"Coinchii said winking with a sly grin.

The heavy axeman grinned and began to walk over.

"Sucker,"Coinchii said as he took the spot.

He could see what was going on now, but he had missed some the conversation. Gyuni was in the middle and Momiri was standing there. Behind Momiri was another person. She didn't look like a player so she must have the been the Game Administrator's Aid. She had a robe on which was pink and had a white lining at the bottom end of the sleeves. In the white lining were pink diamonds. She had long dark brown hair that fell to her waist, and she had a carefree look on her face.

"That doesn't answer my question! He keeps repeating himself and, and won't sell me any scrolls!" Gyuni said half shouting.

She was squinting her eyes in frustration and flailing her arms up and down.

"As I said before, we were late doing maintenance in this area. The data does wear down and needs to be refreshed every now and then,"Momiri replied.

"How will I buy scrolls though?"Gyuni asked looking at Momiri.

"If you know any fighters, team up with them and go hunt them,"Momiri's Aid replied.

Gyuni looked at her for a second then paused she looked over and saw Coinchii sanding in the crowd.

"That'll work I guess,"she said looking down at the ground.

Coinchii walked over as the crowd began to disperse.

"Coinchii, we meet again,"Momiri said with a smile as Coinchii walked over.

"Hiya,"Coinchii replied.

"You hear all that?"Gyuni asked.

"Most of it, yeah,"Coinchii answered, staring blankly.

"Perfect!"Gyuni commented.

Coinchii was invited to a party afterwards.

"Did you get the e-mail, Coinchii?"Momiri's Aid asked him afterwards.

Coinchii rubbed the back of his head in confusion.

"The grunty one? You're Venus?"Coinchii asked looking over.

"Okay then, remember. I hate to be strict but we're tied by the system,"Venus replied scratching her cheek looking up.

"Add down that we have repair the Scroll Shop NPC, and then we'll add notice NPC,"Momiri said to Venus.

Venus pulled out what looked a clipboard. She tapped a few thing with her fingers and nodded at Momiri.

"It's recorded. Now the notice NPC can be added,"Venus replied with still with her cheery smile.

Momiri smiled back and looked at the blank spot in front of the the broken scroll merchant.

"Coordinates 346, 762, and 32. ID 647-59-78,"Momiri replied with her eyes closed.

There was a was a circle on the ground and an italian NPC faded into a solid. The circle vanished leaving the NPC which was wearing a green shirt and green hat. It had on a brown pair of pants some brown shoes. It was kind of fat.

"Enter message: The scroll shop is down for the moment. A report has been sent and the problem will be shortly fixed, please bear with it for now, and hunt for scrolls until the problem is fixed,"Momiri continued.

She nodded then took a step towards the NPC.

"The scroll shop is down for the moment. A report has been sent and the problem will be shortly fixed, please bear with it for now, and hunt for scrolls until the problem is fixed," the NPC mimicked.

"That should help for now. What else is left to do before we can further look into this matter?"Momiri asked.

Venus looked at the clipboard and tapped a few things.

"There's a meeting with Christine and Remial, a report about a frozen player, another hacking complaint,"Venus sighed with a nervous smile.

"Let's send a response to the hacker and player then we can go meet Christine and Remial,"Momiri said.

Momiri and Venus waved to Gyuni and Coinchii and warped away.

"Now we can go get scrolls,"Gyuni said raising her hands into the air.

"I can finally get some also,"Coinchii added, his fist in his palm.

"Then what are we waiting for let's go!"Gyuni said running over to the bridge.

Coinchii caught up then they ran over the bridge and towards the stairs.

"Coinchii you're on early,"Miryo said glomping Coinchii and knocking him over.

"Hi Saku-Miryo,"Coinchii replied blushing.

"Come on already I wanna get some scrolls,"Gyuni replied pushing Miryo off.

Gyuni and Miryo traded member address and Miryo was added to the party. Gyuni quickly ran up to the to the portal.

"Delta Quiet Solitary Stone Castle!"she said raising her staff to the Chaos Gate.

They were whisked away in the gold rings and appeared in a in the field. It was a wasteland and the ground was all dirt, and no grass. There were a few suits of armor scattered about for detail and half buried under ground. They were made for giants it looked like. There were also a few spots with skeletons about 30 feet tall were impaled on rocks, and another piece of decoration, a few towers from a Medieval castle. There was one castle which seemed quite large and must have been the dungeon.

Miryo grabbed Coinchii from behind and was hugging him while looking over at Gyuni. Coinchii was looking back at her with a nervous expression mixed with a little fear shown in his eyes.

"So who are you?"Miryo asked Gyuni.

Her upper eye lids were lowered showing a look of suspicion. Gyuni had her hand above her eyes and was looking around, until Miryo said something. She turned around and looked at Miryo for a second.

"I'm Gyuni, who are you?You must be his girlfriend I guess,"Gyuni stated.

"Oh did you say that, Coinchii?"Miryo said slurring his name some.

She rested her chin on his shoulder.

"I didn't say that, and stop holding on to me. I told you people would think those kinds of things,"Coinchii replied tilting his head away from Miryo's.

"So you two aren't dating?"Gyuni asked beginning to giggle.

"Bu-"Miryo began.  
"There's no way we are dating!"Coinchii interrupted.

"Humph, you'll change your mind later like the last time,"Miryo said in a sly voice.

Coinchii sighed.

"There was no last time, let's get going,"Coinchii responded folding his arms.

Gyuni finished giggling and used a Fairy Orb. They ran up to the first portal, Coinchii in front, while Miryo and Gyuni stood behind. A monster resembling a Goblin jumped out, but its name was Mu Guardian. There was another monster like a Harpy, which was called a Mad Grass as well.

"Are Mu Guardians a form of Goblins?"Coinchii asked slashing at the Mu Guardian/Goblin as it jumped back.

"Rai Kruz!"Miryo shouted casting a spell on the Mad Grass/Harpy.

A shield appeared knocking back the electric balls.

"What the hell? It's fire element, isn't it?"

Coinchii jumped at the Mu Guardian/Goblin only to have it dodge a few more time. Coinchii finally gave up and ran towards the Mad Grass/Harpy which was trying to attack Miryo. It kicked its feet at Miryo, but she pulled her up staff and took the impact from the attacks. Coinchii jumped and slashed in a crescent at the monster but three dark spikes jutted out of the ground knocking Coinchii over.

"La Repth!"Gyuni shouted healing Miryo and Coinchii.

She saw the goblin running towards and ran over to the other two. She pulled on Miryo and Coinchii, and they began to run away. The monster were following but were still slower. After taking a few attacks and recovering they managed to slip away.

"This map must be bugged let's leave,"Coinchii said putting his sword on his shoulders.

They agreed and warped back to Mac Anu.

Ryo took off the headset and checked the clock it was now 7:39. He put on the headset to continue playing

"I wonder if that was because the maintenance was late,"Coinchii said walking down the stairs.

"Sorry but I have to go, Gyuni. My parents don't want me playing since I just got back,"Miryo said waving she walked over and glomped Coinchii who was lost in thought."See you tomorrow at school Coinchii."Miryo warped away allowing Coinchii to stand back up.

"I guess I have to wait till later to get some scrolls,"Gyuni moaned sitting on the lowest step.

Coinchii sat down and closed his eyes for a second to gather his thoughts.

"I already said I don't want to fight!"a voice cried out.

Coinchii and Gyuni looked over.

"If you didn't want to fight then you should have avoided our guild,"a blademaster said.

He had on black pants, a black shirt, and black shoes. He wore a metal chest plate for armor, and had on metal shoulder pads. He had black spiky hair that tilted sideways some. He had his sword drawn and was facing a twinblade which wore a brown shirt and red pants. He had on a red vest and had a poofy brown hat with a red star on the front. His daggers were drawn out but he looked hesitant and as though he wanted to run away.

"I just joined the guild, I didn't know we were at war,"he said taking a step back.

"Too bad,"the blademaster said.

He jumped at the twinblade and slashed down. The twinblade brought up his daggers and stopped the attack but one of daggers was knocked into the river.

"Hey stop it, leave him alone!"Coinchii said running over.

"Who are you?"the blademaster asked.

"I'm Coinchii and I work under AnakinseZ, I'm supposed to stop people like you,"Coinchii said.

Coinchii pulled his blade from his back and balanced it him in front himself. The twinblade looked at Coinchii for a second then turned around and ran away.

"Dammit, he got away. You're gonna pay for this. October member or not,"the blademaster said adjusting his sword.

He began to run towards Coinchii and both their swords clashed. The swords were locked as they both pushed against the other. The blademaster grunted as he began to lose the grip on his sword. Coinchii pulled his sword back and slashed upwards, knocking the sword from the blademaster's hands.

"Why were you attacking that twinblade anyways?" Coinchii asked. His sword's tip was against the blademaster's throat and the blademaster was pushed against a wall.

"My guild was at war with his, so I wasn't doing anything wrong,"the blademaster said clinching his fist.

"Being against another guild and player killing are two different things,"Gyuni huffed, walking over.

"What does he mean his guild was at war?"Coinchii asked, his sword still at the blademaster's neck.

"Well if you're in a guild, and you don't like another guild you can declare war. Usually though a battle has to be decided from the Guild Masters as to who and when and where a battle can take place. Either way though killing in town is illegal,"Gyuni explained.

"That twinblade didn't seem to know what was going on,"Coinchii said turning back to the blademaster.

The blademaster cringed and gulped.

"Any last words?"

"October or not, you can't kill a player without permission either. Kill me now and you'll be a Player Killer as well!"the blademaster replied with a nervous grin.

"I'm part of the Elite Rogue Squadron. I'm not a direct member of October, but I do get special privileges, such as allowed player killing,"Coinchii said.

He shoved the sword into the blademaster's neck. After a grunt he removed the sword and the blademaster fell to the ground, his character gray.

"Not bad,"a voice called from behind.

Coinchii turned around and saw Skyld and the twinblade from before.

"Seems you didn't need help after all, but thanks for getting me,"Skyld said turning to the twinblade.

The twinblade nodded and left.

"Hey Skyld, I won a plushie of you!"Coinchii said with a grin.

Skyld had a sweatdrop going down his head.

"Err..anyways. I was about to meet up with Anakin and go a dungeon that's supposed to be bugged, I found that twinblade who said he needed my help. You handled it nicely though,"Skyld said.

"Can I come?"Coinchii asked lifting his sword and and placing it on his back.

"I don't see why not, but what about you, Gyuni?"Coinchii asked.

"Don't worry about me, I have other people on my member address, and we can try another dungeon,"Gyuni replied.

Coinchii nodded and followed Skyld as he walked away. AnakinseZ was standing at the top of the stairs before Chaos Gate as the two approached.

"There you are,"AnakinseZ said as he noticed the two coming.

"Hey Coinchii. You need something?"

"I wanted to go to the bugged dungeon also,"Coinchii said excitedly.

AnakinseZ sighed and looked at Skyld who just shrugged. Skyld invited AnakinseZ to the already formed party and turned to the Chaos Gate.

"Delta Quiet Solitary Stone Castle!"Skyld shouted pointing the tip of his sword to the Chaos Gate.

They warped away and Coinchii realized it was the map from earlier. The Mu Guardian/Goblin and Harpy/Mad Grass were already waiting.

"Let's take them out quickly, then go for the dungeon,"Skyld said, sword ready.

AnakinseZ ran up and slashed at the Harpy/Mad Grass and knocked down towards the ground. He finished it off quickly with a stab.

Skyld meanwhile was working on the the Mu Guardian/Goblin. He had his sword at shoulder level pointing towards the bugged monster. Skyld's eyes went wide and he jumped over and behind the Mu Guardian/Goblin. The monster quickly turned only to be killed by the blow on its skull. It turned gray and blew into dust.

"You guys are so strong. Gyuni, Miryo, and I couldn't even kill one, but you were all jump and smash!"Coinchii was saying as they continued walking to the dungeon.

"The jump wasn't for looks, he was dodging a spell,"AnakinseZ responded.

"It cast Ani Zot somehow, although it really doesn't surprise me with all the data screwed around with it,"Skyld said, looking around.

"If this is the work of a hacker then it's kinda out of the way, and nothing could really be gained,"AnakinseZ said as they approached the dungeon.

"So you think this might be one of them?"Skyld asked.

They were standing outside the entrance.

"More then likely if it is them we'll find her at the top of this dungeon,"AnakinseZ said looking up.

"But dungeons go down, or is this one different?"Coinchii asked.

"Yeah a few dungeons have levels that go up, and there are also some that are just one level,"AnakinseZ answered,"Let's go."

Skyld nodded and they walked in, Coinchii following with a grin on his face.

They managed to make it to the third floor with few troubles. AnakinseZ used a fairy orb and the dungeon map was displayed.

"So this is the last floor, let's hope she's here if this is them,"AnakinseZ said sighing.

"By them you mean those hackers, right? Pyro, Aqua, and Jade?"Coinchii asked as they walked into the next room.

There no portals until the room before the Gott Statue, which was odd for any dungeon.

"Hackers? Umm, yeah," AnakinseZ answered.

"So I was going to ask, is Skyld joining October, or is he already member or something?"Coinchii asked, the silence was getting to him.

"It's more like a favor for me, I guess you could say,"AnakinseZ replied scratching his cheek.

Skyld chuckled.

"This is the last room, the portal is here so I think that they would be also,"Skyld said, stopping before the darkened door way.

They filled their hp and let their SP recharge. Once full they walked into the next room. The portal faded and a treasure chest laid on the ground. Everyone went wide-eyed with a sweatdrop.

"That was anti-climatic,"Coinchii said walking over.

He bent down and went to open the chest but was quickly pulled back. He looked up and saw Skyld holding the back of his shirt.

"Let's do this,"AnakinseZ drawing his weapon.

He walked over and raised his sword. There was a pause then AnakinseZ brought his sword down attacking the chest. The ground split and some shards of stone flew out of the way. _The chest moved..._ Coinchii thought upon seeing it.

"So it was a Mimic,"Skyld said dropping Coinchii and pulling out his sword.

"Huh?...A Mimic?"Coinchii asked sitting up, rubbing the bump on his head.

AnakinseZ had slashed at the monster again only to have it jump over his blade.

"Yeah, a monster that resembles a chest to catch players off guard,"Skyld said getting a hit on the Mimic with a horizontal slash,"Players go up thinking it's just a chest but then it jumps at them and attacks them before the player knows what happens."

Skyld had blocked an attempted attack from the Mimic. AnakinseZ took advantage of the moment getting a slash on the top of the Mimic breaking the top in half. The Mimic turned gray and blew away into dust.

"That monster wasn't bugged, and it doesn't look like a fourth hacker is here. I wonder if she's in the next room,"AnakinseZ said quickly.

Coinchii scratched his head in confusion but nodded anyways. AnakinseZ had a sweatdrop on his head was nervously laughing.

"Let's try the Gott Room only one left,"Skyld said walking over. They went into the dark doorway and came into the room.

"Look at the statue! That's the first time I've seen one like that,"Coinchii said once they arrived in the next room.

It had a cocoon and what looked like the figure of someone curled up inside slightly visible.

"Probably because you don't go to many high level areas, at least not yet,"AnakinseZ looking about the room.

Coinchii walked over and opened up the chest. He got two Grunt Dolls and a set of twinblade daggers. They were black, like the color of the night during a lunar eclipse. It was appropriate seeing how the daggers were called the Eclipse Daggers. Coinchii put them away and stood back up joining Skyld and AnakinseZ again.

"Yeah this level is the only area on the map that didn't have any bugs,"Coinchii heard AnakinseZ say as he approached the two.

"Maybe we passed the hacker on the other floor, and she was still editing some monsters?"Coinchii asked.

They walked back into the room where the Mimic once stood.

"We cleared out all the monsters and they were all bugged, but maybe he is right in the fact we passed her,"Skyld said looking over at AnakinseZ.

Coinchii looked over at AnakinseZ as well. He had a weird look on his face so Coinchii looked over in the direction AnakinseZ was. He saw Pyro sitting in the air, as though she was in a chair.

"You guys sure know how to make a lady feel beautiful, I mean staring at me and all,"she said grinning slightly, using one hand to cover half her face.

"This is Pyro I presume?"AnakinseZ said in a low voice, drawing out his sword.

Coinchii nodded pulling out his blade also, Skyld already had his out.

"Hey there, love. We met just yesterday but it seems like an eternity to me,"Pyro said looking at Coinchii.

"I, err, you're against "The World" so you're an enemy!"Coinchii fumbled around his words.

"Coinchii, don't let her get to you,"Skyld said, keeping his attention focused on Pyro.

"I'm not the enemy after all I decided to listen to you, and I'll fulfill your your request, if you want me to,"Pyro said.

"What are you talking about?"AnakinseZ asked sliding his foot forward.

Pyro chuckled then put her hand up into the air and it began to glow.

"She's going to create some monsters!"Coinchii said rushing forward.

"Don't move,"Coinchii paused as he heard a familiar, emotionless, voice. Aqua walked out into the dungeon from the other room. If it wasn't for the voice Coinchii would have thought it a different person. Her hair was similar but now blue, and instead of the cloths she wore on their first encounter, she now wore what was like a blue kimono with light blue stars on it. There was a black belt tied at the middle making a bow on her back.

"Aqua?"Coinchii said in shock.

All of a sudden there was a flapping as Coinchii looked over he saw three Harpies fly through a red portal, created from Pyro. Aqua slowly raised her finger towards the Harpy trio and a blue light shot out. It approached the Harpies and the blue glow spread out. The Harpies turned purple now, and grew slightly larger.

"Think our lovely Harpies are enough now Aqua?"Pyro asked standing up in the air and floating over next to Aqua.

She landed with a slight thud, and a gust of air.

"You know the orders, once I strengthen them, Kiiro is to scramble the data, so no one knows what it's capable of,"Aqua explained.

"So I guess that's my cue to come it," another loud voice rang out echoing through the room.

Another woman walked up behind Pyro and Aqua. She had on a pair of yellow cargo pants, and a tight yellow shirt. She had on a yellow jacket the same color as rest of her cloths, and she had boots coming her ankles, which her pants were tucked into. She had blond hair the came a bit past her shoulders. Her eyes were blue, and she had a big grin on her face.

"Be careful, the two less cute ones are a bit stronger, try to spa-"Pyro began to say until Kiiro interrupted.

"Whatever, stop being so flirtatious,"she said cracking her knuckles.

Pyro closed her eyes and turned away insulted, causing a sweatdrop to fall down AnakinseZ, Coinchii, and Skyld's heads. Kiiro put her arms directly apart from each other palm facing away, then brought them back around, punching her palm. Nothing seemed to happen at first but then the room became wavy. Coinchii tilted forward then the ground shifted making him go backwards and falling.

"It's the Harpies, she's altering the data. It's not just that though, this whole room seems to be feeling the effect,"AnakinseZ shifting his weight to stay balanced.

The walls, roof, and floor had turned black now, and the Harpies still kept there shape but were a system of 1's one 0's. The shaking had stopped once the room vanished, and Coinchii stood back up weapon ready.

The black was now disappearing revealing a circle of empty dirt. There were a group of surrounding trees all of which were dead, and it seemed like night. Beyond the trees seemed like there was nothing, just a stretch of land with no end to be found. The Harpy figures now appeared and were still 1's and 0's, the three women behind them.

"Have fun with the monsters, boys,"Pyro said warping away in her red glow.

"Good luck handling those beasts, you'll need it,"Kiiro added warping away with bright yellow light, a slight wave added.

"Even if you finish these monsters off it'll be a task getting out of here,"Aqua stated, in her cold emotionless voice,"Now take them out," Aqua warped away in her blue glow as the Harpies headed towards the group.

"Dammit. We'll make it one-on-one, lure them apart,"AnakinseZ commanded running off to the left.

A harpy followed him as planned.

"You run the other way, Coinchii,"Skyld said stepping in front.

Coinchii and nodded and ran off into the thicket of dead trees. He heard a sound like a small explosion form behind but came running out the other side of the trees before he turned around. There was a Harpy following him and he readied his sword. Coinchii expected the Harpy to come flying up to him but it stopped about 15 feet away. _It can't cast can it?_ Coinchii thought to himself. There was a silence then the Harpy let out a shriek. A black rope shot out from the Harpy's chest with data floating through it. It narrowly missed Coinchii's right arm. He looked behind him and the dirt from the impact had landed. The ground turned black with a data stream visible as the rope flew back into the Harpy.

"This will be interesting,"Coinchii said flinching.

He felt his legs grow weak but forced them to move. He began running towards the still black Harpy with the data stream running through it. He got close enough and jumped up attempting to slash at, but only to get knocked back from another of those rope like attacks. Coinchii landed on his right foot and slid back some before planting his left foot on the ground. He ducked to the right as the rope came back at him and took away some more data from the dirt behind him.

"This is what I'm talking about, I knew you would have all the fun!"a voice said from nowhere.

All of a sudden Zero warped in. Coinchii looked back at the Harpy ignoring Zero and dodging another attack. Two blades appeared from Zero's bracers and he jumped in front of Coinchii. The rope shot forwards and Zero effortlessly cut it off making it retreat back into the Harpy.

"You're that one guy,"Coinchii said realizing who Zero was.

"'That one guy' isn't really making my reputation feel good,"Zero said knocking back another rope.

Coinchii stood back up and picked his weapon up.

"Defend yourself because I'm not protecting you in this battle."

Coinchii nodded and ran to the left while Zero knocked back another rope and ran to the right.

"Why are you helping?"Coinchii asked running towards the Harpy, it's attention on Zero at the moment.

He jumped up and slashed at the monster but the sword passed through and began to crack.

"Ack, physical attacks won-,"Zero began but was cut off when he had roll out of the way of an attack,"Attacking the Harpy will just damage your weapon."

The Harpy squealed and dove at Coinchii. He slashed at it which stopped the Harpy, but his sword was now half destroyed. He watched as the shards fell to the ground. Zero began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Coinchii snapped stepping back and dropping his useless sword.

"This is the kinda fun I like,"Zero said licking his katar.

He put away his katar and picked up a near by rock.

"You might want to run kid," Zero threw the rock into the monster and it disintegrated instantly.

"I don't wanna be...wait it's just a game right?"Coinchii asked beginning to freak out.

The Harpy was staring Coinchii down. Zero muttered something under his breath as his face changed to a more serious expression. _I can't die here_ Coinchii thought to himself no longer moving. _You won't die, but you can't fight, run!_ Coinchii heard a voice say in his mind.

"Good luck, kid. I'm outta here, this fight is impossible. I'll tell you one thing though, the monster absorbs data,"Zero said, his voice as serious as his face.

He turned around and disappeared in yellow rings.

"That bastard, leaving me here,"Coinchii said out of anger.

The Harpy flapped it's wings and shot another rope that skinned passed Coinchii's right leg. Coinchii had tried to warp out only to find it was impossible for him. _I'll go run and and find Skyld or AnakinseZ, I'm sure they've killed their Harpies. _Coinchii thought starting to dart for the circle of dead trees where he first entered. The Harpy turned and shot out a few more ropes which Coinchii side stepped to avoid. He passed the dirt tossed into the air from the impact, and wiped it from his eyes. He was surprised how much more agile his character seemed without the weapon on his back, or being in his hand. He came into the thicket of trees forcing himself through franticly, breaking several branches and cutting the him as he passed through. He came into the clearing and saw Skyld leaning against an old tree.

"Coinchii, go get Anakin, we'll be leaving soon just hold out,"Skyld said as he lifted himself up the tree knocking away a rope.

Coinchii ducked as he heard another rope from his Harpy bash into the dirt. He looked back and used the fear to keep running. He ran through the trees and glanced over his shoulder noticing the Harpy was gone. _Skyld is fighting both of them I have to hurry and get AnakinseZ_ Coinchii thought. He closed his eyes and began sprinting even faster towards the small figures which would have to be AnakinseZ and the Harpy.

"AnakinseZ! Skyld told me to get you hurry up and come!"Coinchii shouted as he fell from tripping.

He could make out AnakinseZ looking over and then running over towards his direction. Coinchii picked himself up and began running back in Skyld's direction. They saw Skyld pushing his way through the trees followed by the Harpy, as they came up to the collection of dead trees. There were yellow rings as Venus appeared in between them. She quickly looked at the three and all four vanished appearing back in Mac Anu.

"Later on, at the same place,"Venus said quickly then warped away, while she turned at Coinchii.

"What was that?"Coinchii asked with an overwhelming relief going through his body.

"Nothing to worry about we have the meeting to go to, now. Let's go Coinchii. Later Skyld,"AnakinseZ said turning to the Chaos Gate.

Skyld left the party, and disappeared in golden rings.

"We're kinda late,"AnakinseZ sighed.

Coinchii looked at him, he had marks all over his face and hands. His cloths had a few tear marks and were scuffed, his headband was slanted on his head now. They disappeared in golden rings and appeared in Dun Lorieg. Coinchii looked around, he felt tired but wanted to finish the meeting he looked over and saw AnakinseZ walking away so he quickly walked to catch up but paused when he saw a pot full of water. _I don't look much better myself_ Coinchii thought to himself. He had cuts all over his face and his bandanna was slanted as well. His shirt had a few tears in it and had dirt marks, like his face, all over. His pants were torn along the legs and you could see some red from the cuts, although there wasn't any blood coming out.

"This game sure has some good graphics,"Coinchii muttered as he ran over the wooden plank bridge caching up to AnakinseZ.

They approached the Grunty farmed and walked around the back, the others were already waiting. Serena, Ace, Shadows, and Junhi looked up as the battered and beaten AnakinseZ and Coinchii arrived. They stared wide eyed in confusion as AnakinseZ sat down with a nervous smile on his face.

"So glad to see everyone is here, time for the first ERS meeting,"AnakinseZ said straightening his headband and wiping off some dust.

"What happened to you?"Ace asked, his hand was raised in the air.

"I'll probably tell later, but for now we have some issues to discuss,"AnakinseZ began.

"Now it's been a week since the ERS began, and this could be considered a report for progress you could say."

"What's ERS stand for? Elite Rouge Squadron?"Junhi asked, his hand in the air as well.

"Yeah, now let's start with you Junhi, what have you gotten done since we started the ERS?"

"I haven't seen much but I found a member of October and he helped me learn some things about what I should and shouldn't do,"Junhi replied nervously.

"That's good, it works for now. Coinchii, what have you accomplished?"AnakinseZ asked, turning towards Coinchii.

"Other then getting attack repeatedly by those hackers, I stopped a Player Killer earlier,"Coinchii said with a smirk on his face.

"That's good, we'll discuss the hackers after the report. Ace you do anything?"AnakinseZ turning to Ace who was sitting across in the circle.

"I had two hacker incidents, but you just said we'd discuss that afterwards,"Ace replied.

"Serene?"AnakinseZ said naming off the the only female in Elite Rogue Squadron.

"I stopped two illegal guild battles, sort of,"Serene said rubbing the back of her head.

The others looked over confused.

"I had to leave during the second one,"she moaned.

"And our fifth member, Shadows?"AnakinseZ said as though he was introducing him.

"There was a player who kept blocking dungeons, that people were trying to go into. I took care of the situation though,"Shadows replied.

"Okay, very good, even though you all started only recently you did more then I think you would've. It seems that ERS is working out pretty well so far. Now onto the other matter we were to discuss. News about anyone in association with the woman we met at the initiation. First I'll start by telling the information we have at the moment, the information you guys fo- and girl found out you reported to me so this is what we know so far,"AnakinseZ began,"In the initiation we encountered the first hacker known as Jade, she was mostly green, as her name would make you think since jade is a green stone. She seemed to be able to transform into powerful and unique monsters. Coinchii and Ace discovered a second hacker. This one was known as Aqua, and was of course blue. Aqua is also another way of saying water. Aqua has the ability to strengthen any monster. The extent of her power, and any other effects are still unknown, but this one is proven. Coinchii and two of his friends found a third hacker. I also received the notice of mass numbers of monsters who were completely red running rampant in one field from Ace. The third hacker is name after fire and is red. Her name is Pyro, she has the ability to create monsters, how the monsters stats and other various things in general can be created we do not know. On a rumor earlier Skyld, Coinchii, and I explored a dungeon with rumors about bugged monsters"

"Skyld, is he part of October?"Serene asked, while interrupting.  
"He's an old friend and was helping. The dungeon's monsters were scrambled, it was impossible to tell how to fight it, but they were weak enough we managed to clear out the dungeon and reached the last level. We found no hacker until we left the Gott Room. I encountered Pyro for the first time here, and witnessed her power. I also saw Aqua accompanying her. There was a fourth hacker we met also, the one doing the data scrambling. Her name was Kiiro. Kiiro is yellow in japanese if I'm not mistaken. In addition to scrambling a monster's abilities, stats, and other things, she can also affect the area, and morph it into another area. We'll be in the same place we were before the warp, but if anyone goes into the area it looks like we're in we'll see them. Kiiro showed a third type of ability associated with her power. She converted three Harpies into nothing but data, no specific data though. These Harpies were immune to attacks, since they had no physical form, and they were able to change there body into creating an attack specifically for deleting data. My theory is that they were made to be missing data so their attacks would drain the data from an area. We don't know what their full powers are, but at the moment it seems they're most dangerous when they work together as a team, and Kiiro so far is the most dangerous from what we know. We also know they have someone in who seems to be a leader. We heard the voice in the dungeon during your initiations, and when Coinchii and I were in the dungeon earlier we heard Aqua say their orders, so we can confirm they work below someone,"AnakinseZ finished the explanation.

"Crap sorry, I really gotta go, it's late,"Coinchii said bowing in an apology.

"That's the end of the meeting for now, I have a place to be at also. The meeting is over now, I'll let you know when the next meeting is!"AnakinseZ shouted while running away.

"I wonder what he's in a hurry for,"Shadows said as they watched AnakinseZ run over the wooden bridges in the distance. Coinchii looked over then warped out.

Ryo now took off his headset and removed his shirt and pants looking up at the clock. It was 9:30 so he figured they probably arrived at the meeting around 8:30 or so. He got into bed turning on his alarm clock and turning off his bedside lamp.

Ryo awoke the next day to the sound of his alarm clock. He yawned and threw the blanket off. He stood up for a second before collapsing onto the ground. A sharp pain shot through his leg causing him to scream in pain.

* * *

Reviews, comments, and all that other stuff welcome. Oh and as a quick clarification, the substitute and other two students are just minor characters. Next chapter should be up next week.

Next Chapter's-  
Plot:Somewhat progresses  
Importance:Pretty important chapter  
Things to look forward to:Some new things happen and some explenations occur.  
Balance:Starts in real life, but a good portion takes place in "The World"


	11. Chapter 11:Ryo's Return

The opening and ending author notes are going to be shorter than usual since I'm not feeling well. Enjoy

* * *

Ryo quickly woke up panting and sweating. The hospital beds were uncomfortable and he was waking up from the nightmare of the event of the battle with the harpies.

Coinchii looked over at the clock on the hospital wall, it was two in the morning. He laid back on his pillow sighing.

The doctors came soon after the call from a few weeks ago. When Ryo woke up and had an immense pain in his leg. They found the cause of the problem, but were puzzled as how he got injured. His leg had suffered muscle and tissue damage, it was similar to burning, but there was no sign of damage on the outside of his leg.

"The only cause I can think of is the fight with that weird harpy, but that was in game,"Ryo said to himself in the darkness," I mean...In the fight it's attack skimmed by my leg, could that really be the cause? Did the hackers somehow find a way to hurt people in real life?"

_Not hackers, AIs._ a voice suddenly said in his head. He shook is head thinking he was just hearing things. He paused for a moment to listen to the sounds. All he could hear was a cart being wheeled around the hospital and the sounds of people walking. He sighed and went back to sleep. He wanted to be fully awake when he got out of the hospital tomorrow.

"Ryo, today's your big day, time to wake up,"a voice said.

Ryo slowly opened his eyes and looked over at the nurse.

"Good morning, what time is it? When do I get out of here?" he asked rubbing his eyes.

"Well they're just going to do a few test to make sure you're really okay then you'll be released,"she said with a smile.

Ryo stood up and walked around a bit to get the feeling in his leg, before the test. He ate the breakfast the nurse had brought in afterwards. He looked up at the clock, it was 8:05. He sighed. _Hospitals are such boring places..._ he thought. He laid down for a bit until the nurse came back in.

"Ryo, they want to scan your leg again, are you ready?"the nurse asked entering his room again.

Ryo nodded and got up, following the nurse. They walked through the hallways and came into a weird room. He already knew what to do and laid down on the mat in front of a large machine. A doctor slid the mat into the machine and left the room. Ryo stared up at the weird light shining through the glass above him. He heard what he had come to known was the machine starting. A weird camera like device appeared behind the glass above Ryo and went down by his leg. A red wall-like light shot out of the camera and covered his leg going back and forth a few times. The machine died down and Ryo was pulled out of it.

"The scans seem to be good, just a few last questions,"the doctor said pulling out a pen from his coat.

"Okay,"Ryo replied.

"Have you been feeling any pain lately in your right leg?"

"Not within the last two days, and before that it was only slightly hurting."

"Okay, and have you been taking the medicine?"

"Yeah."

"Finally I just need you to tell me a few things,"he said.

He put his pen in his coat again and put his clipboard down. He pulled out two rubber gloves and a popsical stick-like thing.

"Open wide,"the doctor said.

Ryo obeyed. The doctor studied the mouth for a few seconds and threw the object away. He pulled out a flashlight next.

"Tell me what's your name."

"Ryo Kuinichi."

"And where are you now?"

"The hospital."

"Who is in your family?"the doctor was asking as he was shining the flashlight into Ryo's eyes who was trying to close them.

"I have a mother, father, and little brother."

"Okay, your mental state and physical state seem fine, you should be able to go now."

"Yes!"Ryo cheered.

After he stretched he walked back to his room and grabbed his belongings. He removed the hospital robe, inluding the bandages, and put on the cloths his mother brought him the day before. He walked out into the waiting room.

"Ryo!" everyone seemed to shout as he walked in.

Ryo smiled and waved. Everyone was there except his dad who had to work. Suichi, Dylan, Kiane, Sakura, his mom, and Hiro walked him out.

"I was so worried about you," Sakura said, holding onto Ryo's arm.

"I'm glad this is over. Hey, mom, can you make me something to eat when we get home? Hospital food sucks,"Ryo said coming up to the car.

"You may have just gotten out of the hospital, but I'm not going to baby you. If you want something to eat, you'll have to make it yourself. Do you three want a ride to your houses?"his mom asked Suichi, Dylan, and Sakura.

"Finally home!"Ryo shouted as he walked into the house.

He laid against the wall and kissed it.

"The hospital is the worst place ever,"he said to the wall as though it was listening.

He made a lunch then walked up stairs. He stared at his computer for a few seconds and sat down. He wondered about what he had missed and started up the Altimit System. He had several e-mails but was able to delete most of them. The remaining ones were: one from AnakinseZ, Ace, CC Corp, and one from someone known as Code. He scrolled to the first one from AnakinseZ

"The ERS is having a meeting Wednesday again, I haven't seen you on and I don't know when you'll be back on, so I'll save a log for you."Ryo finished reading the first message and moved on to the next one.

"Hey Ryo, where have you been? The hackers have been less active lately, in fact after the meeting last week no one's seen them, did you do anything?" Ryo replied to the message telling him about how he was in the hospital, he then scrolled to the next message.

"Player Coinchii did not show up at his Gruntyback match and has been disqualified."Ryo groaned.

"I was in the hospital I couldn't exactly play there," he said to his computer.

He sighed and scrolled to the last message from the person called Code.

"Ryo Kuinichi, glad to see you're out of the hospital, but you can't take a break I'll contact you soon. At that point I'll explain myself."

"What the hell..."Ryo commented at the e-mail.

He shrugged it off for now. He then clicked onto 'The World' and logged in.

"Told you he'd get on,"a voice said.

Coinchii now fully appeared and looked back. He figured Mohi was the one who said it.

"It's about time you got back on,"Gyuni said standing up and wiping herself off.

"Wow, I get a welcome wagon in here also,"Coinchii replied gleefully, he had a large grin going across his face.

"Hiya everyone,"he said waving. Gyuni, AnakinseZ, Skyld, Ace, Serene, Junhi, Shadows, and Cuoka had joined Miryo, Mohi, Demon, and Kain in welcoming him.

"I got an idea, to celebrate Coinchii's return why don't we have a large scale party and go to a dungeon?"AnakinseZ answered.

"Yeah, before those hackers return we might as well enjoy some peace,"Ace said.

"Let's not worry about them for the moment and enjoy ourselves, now let's see we have 13 people, quite a large party,"Skyld said looking around.

"I'm gonna be Coinchii's party of course,"Miryo said running over to Coinchii.

"The Elite Rogue Squadron can all form into one party, so I'll lead the other four,"AnakinseZ said starting a party with the others.

"And I-"Cuoka began.  
"And you're not going with Gyuni,"Mohi interrupted.

"I want to go with someone strong, maybe Skyld?"Gyuni said inching over towards Skyld.

"Okay, sure,"Skyld said inviting her to a party.

"I was with Cuoka last time, so I'll join Skyld and Gyuni's,"Mohi said.

He received an invite shortly afterwards.

"So that leaves Demon, Kain, and I,"Cuoka said counting his fingers.

"So that settles our party set-ups then, I'm with Demon and Cuoka,"Kain said sending out his party invites.

"Okay everyone ready?"AnakinseZ asked.

The group nodded.

"Alright we'll try the dungeon Theta Bursting Forbidden Lost Fort, it's not too difficult but shouldn't be that easy,"AnakinseZ said turning to the Chaos Gate.

"Theta server!"Kain, Coinchii, AnakinseZ, and Skyld, shouted at once.

The group disappeared in a myriad of golden rings and appeared in Dun Lorieg. The four party leaders appeared in Dun Lorieg and turned towards the Chaos Rings again.

"Theta Bursting Forbidden Lost Fort!"they shouted causing them to vanish from town.

They appeared in a thick forest that resembled a dungeon.

"What's this place?"Coinchii asked looking around.

"It's a field that resembles a dungeon,"Skyld said.

He pulled out a Fairy Orb and studied the map for a second.

"Let's go into the next spot,"Mohi said walking foreword.

They passed by a post sticking out of the ground and a spider web shot out behind them locking them in. Coinchii pulled out his weapon knowing there was a portal about to unleash some monsters. Serene walked next to Coinchii ready to fight and Gyuni got ready to heal, if need-be. The portal vanished leaving four human like monsters. Two looked like a heavy axeman, with skull heads, they were called Heavy Metal. The other two looked like blue wavemaster females, and were called Water Witch.

Coinchii ran at one of the Heavy Metals attempting to attack it but he was stopped by by a spell caused from one of the Water Witches. Serene ran after the Water Witch, and Coinchii decided to go after the other. The Water Witches began to retreat running away from the two, but were shortly cornered and killed within a few hits. The Heavy Metals had attempted going after the others only to be killed swiftly by Skyld.

"This dungeon looks troublesome," Cuoka said putting his hand on his forehead.

"Maybe just a bit,"AnakinseZ said sitting against the wall.

They had just entered the last level.

"Yeh, they're actually pretty difficult. I have to admit,"Skyld replied.

"We made it to the last level at least," Ace said, using a healing potion on himself.

"I can almost smell the treasure, I bet it's going to be something good,"Gyuni said rubbing her hands together.

"I've gained quite a few levels also,"Coinchii said putting the sword on his shoulder.

"13 people are having trouble with one dungeon, and two of those people are the strongest players in "The World". I'd think we be getting good experience,"Mohi said.

"Anyways let's continue, shall we?"AnakinseZ said standing back up.

The final level consisted of 4 rooms, the Gott Statue, the room they were in, a room with a portal, and large room. They walked into the next room and were ready. The giant stone doors slammed down and the portal was activated. The monster resembled a human, with long sharp claws. It's head was trapped in a zipped up bag looking object, and it was covered in chains.

"What monster is that?"Coinchii asked pulling his sword.

"Must be new, can't say I've seen it before,"Skyld said.

"Let's just kill it already,"Serene said running towards it.

She slashed downwards only to have the monster dodge her attack. It countered by slashing at Serene knocking her to the wall, her character became a ghost.

"Let me and Skyld handle this monster,"AnakinseZ said.

He reached into his bag and used a resurrect on Serene. Serene ran back over to the group and AnakinseZ and Skyld ran forward to do the attack. The monster lunged at them slashing wildly, but Skyld managed penetrate the the attacks and slashed into monster. It was knocked back but didn't die. AnakinseZ followed up trying to finish it off, but the horizontal slash missed and just hit the wall. The monster stood back up after the attack and and started rapidly slashing into AnakinseZ with its skill. Gyuni cast Repth to recover AnakinseZ's hp. The monster now ran past AnakinseZ to go after Gyuni, but was stopped in it's tracks by Skyld who shoved his sword into the monster's mid section and flung into the wall. It landed on the ground and blew away like dust.

"We can get the treasure now!"Gyuni screeched now running into the next room.

Skyld put his sword back into his sheath. Coinchii followed Gyuni with a smile on his face. He always enjoyed being able to see Skyld and AnakinseZ fight, it was even cooler seeing them work together.

"Coinchii has almost caught up to our levels,"Mohi said to Demon as they passed though the room before the Gott Statue.

"It's almost been a month since he started,"Miryo said.

"That reminds me, Mohi, did you win your grunty back match?"Coinchii asked.

Everyone stopped just before the Gott Statue's room.

"Oh yeah, you must have gotten disqualified since you were in the hospital. I passed my match, yeah. Spectators can come watch after the next match,"Mohi said.

"I'm going to get the treasure, be right back,"Gyuni said skipping into the Gott Statue room.

"Not a bad day for just returning,"Coinchii said.

"I haven't had this much fun in awhile, it's nice just doing a dungeon,"AnakinseZ replied.

"Yeah and this has to be the first time anyone has done a dungeon with 13 people together,"Junhi replied.

Gyuni came back out with a grin on her face.

"I got a powerful armor and this golden spoon!"Gyuni said.

She held out the spoon for everyone to see.

"It's a golden...spoon,"Mohi replied cluelessly.

"What's it do?"Coinchii asked running over.

"I don't know but it has to be a rare item!"Gyuni said.

She held it by her said where it disappeared into her inventory and joined the circle of people sitting down.

"This is how "The World" should be enjoyed. No AIs, no problems, just friends and fun,"Coinchii said laying down.

"AIs?"Ace asked looking over at Coinchii.

"Eh, oh hackers, my bad,"Coinchii corrected himself.

AnakinseZ sighed.

"The truth is they actually are AIs,"AnakinseZ said.

Everyone looked over.

"You sure it was good to tell them?" Skyld asked looking at AnakinseZ to his right.

"They'd have to figure it out eventually, but how did you know it was an AI, Coinchii?"AnakinseZ responded.

"I don't really know, it just kinda appeared in my head,"Coinchii answered.

He sat back up and looked over.

"Why don't we just wait until we have to worry about them again, to talk about them?"Ace said.

"It's good to take a break,"Miryo said.

"I guess you're right,"AnakinseZ said giving in.

"You sure have become a work-a-holic, Anakin,"Skyld said with a smirk.

"Can't really help it,"AnakinseZ shrugged.

"It's almost time for dinner, let's return to town, and I'll come back when I'm done,"Mohi said.

"Yeah, I think I'll order dinner now also,"Kain said.

Everyone warped to town at this point, and Kain, Coinchii, Miryo, Demon, and Mohi logged off to eat dinner.

"Man, home cooked food is so good. You get lousy stuff in the hospital,"Coinchii said when he logged back on.

Only AnakinseZ, Ace, Miryo, Mohi, and Demon were still on.

"Well, it's getting late where I'm at, so I'm going to call it a night, you guys need anything before I leave?"AnakinseZ offered.

Everyone shook their head and said their goodbyes to AnakinseZ.

"How late are you guys going to be on?"Ace asked sitting on the edge of the bridge.

His feet were hanging off and he was looking down into the clouds below Dun Lorieg. Demon was laying down off to the side, and Miryo was sitting next Coinchii who was sitting by Demon. Mohi was leaning against the wall of a shop.

"By the way, guys do you know someone named, Code?"Coinchii asked.

"It's a pen name, I'd guess,"Mohi replied.

"Why do you ask?"Ace responded looking over.

"Well I got an e-mail from him telling me not to take a long break, cause my work wasn't finished."

"Hold on!" Miryo suddenly replied.

"What is it?"

"I remember hearing about a super hacker, I think."

"Oh yeah, I know what she's talking about,"Demon said.

He was still laying there without moving.

"Yeah, Demon, doesn't he use Code as his name?"Miryo asked.

"What are you guys talking about?"Coinchii asked..

He was completely clueless.

"Actually, I'm surprised you and Mohi don't know,"Demon said to Coinchii.

"Why, am I supposed to know?"

"Well, there was a big story in the news about him earlier. Remember?"

"I can't say I do."

"Well, I should expect that,"Demon said with a sweat drop going down his head.

"Oh wait, I know you're talking about now,"Mohi replied.

"What was it?"Ace asked.

"Well,"Mohi began,"a few months ago there was a big story going around about a hacking mishap. Someone who went by the name of Code caused the entire city to go into a five day long power outage. When the power finally returned the computer in the power plant had a message from the guy, apologizing about the mishap."

"Wow, why did it take five days to get power to return?"

"Well whatever he was doing, caused a temporary safe-guard, because of that no one could gain access to the power plant to start it back up manually."

"No one was able to track the source, and find the hacker,"Miryo added.

"I wonder what connection he has with Coinchii though,"Ace said.

"He called me by my real name, so however he knows me, must mean it was from the real world,"Coinchii said.

"Tomorrow is Saturday, we can look into it then,"Mohi said.

"We should have someone here though, shouldn't we? If anything happens here we'll have a means of contacting someone,"Demon said.

"We'll do it this way, since Demon is the best with information, he and Coinchii will research in the real world, meanwhile Miryo and I will stay here. Besides I have my grunty-back competition tomorrow,"Mohi said.

"I want to go with Coinchii though,"Miryo said grabbing Coinchii''s arm.

"I personally like the plan, Mohi,"Coinchii said trying to push Miryo off.

"I don't wanna be separated from Coinchii,"Miryo said pretending to cry.

"Hey guys, think we should go to bed early and prepare for tomorrow?"Coinchii asked.

Mohi was chuckling at the sight.

"He has a point, Coinchii and I should go sleep early, so we can spend more time later investigating,"Demon replied.

"So then our game plan is settled?"Mohi asked everyone.

"I'll be up for awhile, so I'll keep watch tonight for anything, when I see one of you tomorrow I'll report if anything happens,"Ace said.

"I got it, in that case see ya everyone,"Demon said logging off.

"Fine, I'll be on watch tomorrow online,"Miryo pouted.

"Like Dylan said,"Coinchii replied, as he pushed Miryo off and logged out.

Ryo took off the VR headset and shut down his computer.

"We're going to be like detectives, this is so cool,"Ryo hummed to himself as he got ready for bed.

* * *

Reviews and everything else welcome, next weekend I'll post the next chapter as usual. 


	12. Chapter 12:Code Breaker

Well, time for another update, I've began adding working on some of the suggestions I've been sent in.(I'm currently working on chapter 21, but I've been trying to work slower to allow this to catch up.) Also in roughly five more chapters I have a christmas special which I never got around to finishing.(Writing christmas specials during summer is sort of difficult) Anyways when I get up to that chapter I'll probably skip it, so when you see chapter 16 then chapter 18, you know why.

* * *

Ryo walked up to the door of library. Dylan called earlier and told him to come at 8:00 am. Last time he came here was with Sakura when they played "The World" on the third floor. This was the second time he was here. 

"There you are,"Dylan said.

He walked up from a nearby bench. The two walked inside.

"So what are we going to do now?"Ryo asked.

"Research, first we should read over the newspapers, see if we can learn anything, we'll check if there are any books about Code."

"All that work? Can't we just look it up on the internet?"Ryo whined.

"The internet can't always be trusted, there's always the chance we'll get false information, now let's go,"Dylan replied.

Ryo sighed and agreed. Dylan had Coinchii start by going to review the old newspapers, from the power outage, meanwhile Dylan was going to look through the books. Ryo walked over to the machine that had old newspaper articles stored. He turned it on and stared at the screen. It seemed difficult at first, but after a few minutes of playing around with it he figured it out. He came up to the newspaper with the story.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Power Hacking**

_By:Juliet Ramon_

There's a sigh of relief as people have finally gained power after five days of a power outage. With the loss of power everything seemed to be at a standstill which hurt the city's economy greatly. Looting and vandalism were common to find and people were in a constant state of fear.

After what seemed like a sign of the apocalypse, the power returned at 5:00 AM yesterday morning, and the police have immediately gone to work to regain order and stop further crimes caused by the power outage. A team of investigators have been sent to work on discovering why the power outage was caused.

"After the power returned a message appeared on the computers in the power plant. The message was apologizing for causing the power outage,"said one worker from the plant.

The message was reported as being from Code, a legendary hacker, and according to the message the power outage was an accident on Code's behalf. While the investigators know Code is the cause, they have begun to work on finding the identity of the hacker.

"Code, has been on the loose for quite awhile, now, but I think he got cocky this time. If the power outage was mistake then we might be able to find clues as to who he is," said James L. Perelude, head of the investigation.

While they are looking for the hacker, Code, the rest seems to be clear. The power outage was caused because a mistake, and the reason it lasted five days was because of a safe guard, that was meant to prevent access to the computers. The head of the power company, Luise P. Huey, is working on setting up a plant isolation. If successful it'll prevent any access to the power plant from means other then computers in the power plant itself. While this will make it harder to recover from another situation such as this, it should prevent it and make it less frequent. Huey will be also changing his plant around so that someone will be there 24/7.

"It'll cost more for us, yes, but the money will be coming out of my pocket. It's like the people getting better service , for the same price,"Huey says.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ryo finished reading the article and turned the computer off.

"That doesn't help much in learning who Code is, but he doesn't seem like a bad person,"Ryo said to himself.

He was curious, though, as to what Code was after and how a mistake caused the power outage. He flicked through a few more newspapers but nothing seemed to have anymore information so he got up and began wandering around.

He was browsing a few shelves and saw someone looking over at him. The person seemed to be slightly older then Ryo, maybe 18 or so. His hair was brown and seemed messy. He was wearing a blue long sleeve un-buttoned button up shirt on top of a white under shirt. He had blue pants on similar to what Dylan would usually wear.

Ryo quickly diverted his attention and pretended to read a book. It was titled 'Fishing on the Sea:Guide on what you need and why'. He flipped through a few pages and looked out through the corner of his eye. The person was moving but still seemed to be looking at Ryo's direction. He put the book back and went to look for Dylan, seeing if the person would follow. It took awhile, but eventually Ryo found Dylan in the reading section on the second floor. He walked over, still checking to see if the person was watching him.

"Did you find anything useful?"Ryo asked sitting down.

"Nothing to useful yet,"Dylan replied reading through a book.

Ryo noticed the person from before walk onto the second floor now and walk behind a shelf. _That person **is** following me after all_ Ryo thought. He looked at some of the books that Dylan piled up on the table. There were only about two books that seemed to be about the hacker, the rest were books about actually hacking, reasons for hacking, types of hackers.

"Dylan, why are most of these books not even about Code?"Ryo asked looking around the room.

"It's hard to find books about the actual hacker, no one really knows anything about him, so I'm trying to learn more about what kind of person he might be. If we can't find Code, then we might be able to find out his motives,"Dylan responded.

His eyes hadn't moved from the book the entire time. Ryo noticed Dylan was getting into this, he seemed to actually enjoy this. Dylan did usually seem listless, but Ryo figured this challenge to learn about Code was something he wanted.

Ryo glanced back over to the stairs and saw the person trailing him walk away. He began to have second thoughts about whether the person was really following him or not.

"This hacker deserves to be legendary,"Dylan said aloud.

Ryo back looked over to Dylan.

"According to this book, he's hacked into several locations. One of those locations were rumored to be the pentagon,"Dylan said.

"You mean the U.S. Pentagon?"Ryo asked.

He was rocking back and forth in his chair from boredom.

"Yeah, it says he managed to get into a few of the computers but couldn't stay in long, something had managed to block him,"Dylan replied.

Ryo's cellphone rang before he could say anything. He flipped it open and accepted the call.

"Hello?"Ryo said into the phone

"If you're so eager to know about me, then we should meet."

"Is this Code?"Ryo asked.

Dylan looked up.

"Yes. I said I was going to contact you soon...You won't meet me, but you will meet an assistant of mine."

"Why are you interested in me?"

"You can ask your questions later, I need you to leave the library now."

"How did you know we were here?"Ryo asked, although he already knew the answer.

"The truth is I've been interested in you, ever you since started "The World" A.I.D.A.'s have occurred. You seem to be a magnet for attracting them, Ryo. I want to find out more."

"Fine then, where's the meeting spot?"

"I've already said, leave the library."

Code hung up.

"What was that?"Dylan asked.

"The person said he was Code, he knew where we were, he knew we played "The World" and he knew were looking information about him. He wants us to meet his assistant,"Ryo answered.

"What are we waiting for?"Dylan asked.

He closed the book in front of him and put it back on the stack. The two walked down to the first floor, and then across the first floor. They opened the door to library and walked out. A few people were out walking around, but no one gave the two a glance.

"All he said was that, we-"Ryo was interrupted by his cellphone again.

He looked over at Dylan then answered the phone.

"Glad to see you trust me enough to listen to me,"Code said.

"What do we do now?"Ryo asked.

"Yes, now I can tell you the actual meeting spot. You know of the hotel north where you are?"

"Umm, one moment,"Ryo said before he turned to Dylan.

"What is it?"Dylan asked.

"Do you know where the hotel to the north is?"

"He might mean the hotel my uncle owns, Demion Hotel,"Dylan answered.

"Thanks,"Ryo said.

He returned to his cellphone.

"Okay, the Demion Hotel?"Ryo asked

"That's correct,"Code replied.

"Okay is that the meeting spot?"

"No, go to the hotel just past it should be a path. The path leads to an old shrine, few people go there and it will make decent spot. I'll, of course, make sure my assistant is there to meet you."

"Okay. Is that all?"

"For now."

Code hung up again and Ryo put his cellphone away

"Where do we go now?"Dylan asked.

"He says that the meeting spot is by the Demion Hotel. There's a path near it that leads to an old shrine,"Ryo answered.

"That's a long walk, we better get started,"Dylan replied.

They turned to the right and began walking.

The Demion Hotel had now come into sight, and after about 30 minutes of walking Ryo's attention span had given up, and he was now complaining.

"Why does the meeting spot have to be all the way over here?"Ryo asked.

"Don't worry, we're almost there. We're coming up to the path Code was talking about,"Dylan replied.

"Not like we can drive yet."

"Nope."

"I don't think our parents, will exactly drive us to meet some person we hardly know who it is either."

"Don't think they would."

"Why couldn't Code take this into thought?"Ryo asked as they came up to the Demion Hotel.

Ryo paused for a second and let Dylan take the lead. He walked into the hotel and up to the front desk.

"Hello, how may I help you two?"the lady at the counter asked.

"Yes, I'm Dylan Demion, my uncle owns this hotel. I was wondering if we could go to the shrine?"Dylan asked.

"Okay, do you know the way?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Just sign here and you can go ahead."

She pulled a clipboard out and placed it in front of Dylan. He took the pen off of the top of the clipboard and wrote his name on the line. There was another person's name written above his. It was Alfred Sokihie. He wrote the date and returned the pen to it's spot. Dylan went down the hallway to the left and Ryo followed. They opened the door at the end of lengthy hallway, and they were in a small area. There were a thick supply of trees and a small path. They continued down the dirt path and came up a small hut looking building.

"Glad you can make it. Ryo Kuinichi, and Dylan Demion,"a voice said.

They looked over to their right and saw someone leaning against a tree. He wore a black rain coat, over a white button up shirt. He was wearing a gray tie and and gray dress pants. His hair was a mess, but it seemed as though it was made to look like that. So in some odd way it was an organizes mess.

"Alfred Sokihie? So you're Code's assistant?"Dylan asked.

He motioned for the two to walk over to the bench in front of the hut like shrine.

"Well It's not my real name, but yes I'm Code's assistant."

"Isn't it illegal to use a false name?"

"Maybe so, but Code will change the records if need-be. He wouldn't let us go to jail. Data is the code-name I go by. Forgive the pun."

"Huh, I don't get it?"Ryo said.

"He's Code's assistant and he said Data was his **code**-name,"Dylan answered.

"Oh, that's not that funny,"Ryo commented.

Data chuckled.

"Well I'm sure you have a few questions you want to get out of the way, so ask them. Afterwards, I'll explain some things."

"Okay, my first question,"Dylan began,"What does Code want with us?"

"Heh, I should have figured, I'll explain that soon enough, anything else?"

"Yeah, why is Code interested in me in particular?"Ryo asked.

"Well, not that I'm doubting him, but, he's not sure exactly himself. As I'm sure he said in is e-mail you've seemed to have sparked some event, but he doesn't know if it's something unique, about you, or if you were just the lucky person,"Data replied.

"What's an A.I.D.A.?" Dylan asked.

"A.I.D.A. is short for artificial intelligence data anomaly,"Data answered.

"Say wha?"Ryo replied cluelessly.

"How to simplify it...It's like an AI that formed itself, with no cause, and has no logical explanation as to where it came from, how it came to be, or what it wants."

"I understand, sorta...kinda,"Ryo replied feeling slightly stupid.

"I just have one more question, why couldn't Code meet us?"Dylan asked.

"Well as you know, he isn't exactly loved. He's also very busy. So he has assistants to help him out,"Data answered.

"That answers my questions, for the moment,"Dylan said.

"I think I'm good also,"Ryo replied.

"Very well, now I'll explain what we're doing,"Data began.

He pulled off his raincoat and placed it on the table. Ryo had noticed that Data seemed like a kind person actually. And it began to make him wonder what kind of person Code was really like.

"I'll start at the beginning. A few years back there was a mishap and something that shouldn't have been born had somehow came to be. My master, Code, had noticed this and had been keeping track of it. Two AIs which were completely opposite were born. One was out to save herself, and attempt to protect others. The other one was interested in his own gain, and would hurt anyone in his way. The names of these AIs have been lost, and so have the records of this event. "The World" was close to closing down as the events escalated, data was getting scrapped, torn up, and playing the game itself was like risking one's life.

"That is until three players arrived. Like with the AIs very little is known about these three. Any and all records of the event were trashed. Before I get off track, the three players had encountered one of these AIs, the good one Code believes, and something with their data had rewritten itself. Two of them gained a new and powerful weapon, but the other one was stuck with a some sort of curse. Before they knew it the second AI had painted them as a target. Something happened shortly after the encounter with the second AI, and one of the players had stopped logging out. More like they lost the ability to, we were guessing.

"This is when a spike in activity occurred, people were also now falling into comas. As I'm sure you can imagine, this wasn't looking good for "The World". And this is what almost caused it to completely close down. There was an attack by the evil AI on the Delta server, it was closed down. The person who couldn't log out, must have met with the administrators at this point, Code believes. The source of the A.I.D.A.s and the administration were closely linked after this moment.

"Then as everything seemed to reach the climax there was a report of a map abandoning "The World". Whatever happened in that map was the end of the event, the energy and data from the AIs both disappeared, and the map itself was gone. The records were deleted to prevent anyone from getting into it, and any traces were erased. At this time the people in the coma had returned, and "The World" had begun to re-establish itself. CC Corp had begun reorganize itself and everything seemed returning to normal. Whatever the cause of the AIs were seemed to had vanished.

"We believe Skyld, AnakinseZ, and a player named Jugatsu were responsible for it. Out of all the coma victims one didn't come back to life. The kid's name was Kaishin at the age of 15. His character on "The World" was Jugatsu and his data disappeared. From what the logs say before the data absense he often came into contact with Skyld and AnakinseZ."

Ryo and Dylan were sitting there enjoying the explanation, as though it was a story.

"Now that you two are informed, I can explain why Code is so interested in Ryo. You see the A.I.D.A.'s that occurred back then, are 98 similar to the A.I.D.A.'s that happened just now. He's not sure why exactly it waited until now to resurface, if it is the same thing, but whatever it is Code thinks they're after Ryo."

"Weren't they already in the system, before I joined? AnakinseZ said that there were rumors about the AIs,"Ryo replied.

"Well, yes the activity did reappear shortly before you joined, but once you did there was a spike in activity."

"So does Code know why they're after Ryo?"Dylan asked.

"Unfortunately not, that's we resorted to contacting you. It'll be easier to keep in contact and share information, if you know of his presence."

"So how long as he been following us?"

"He started following the AIs about a month or so before you or your friends began playing "The World", but he began to follow Ryo a few days after he joined."

"Do you have any other information?"Ryo asked.

Ryo yawned, not being used to going this long without doing anything.

"Not at the moment, if you two have your questions answered then I'll be on my way and report to Code."

Ryo and Dylan shook their head, their questions had for moment had been answered.

"Then I'll see myself out,"Data said.

He picked his coat up and put it back on. He started walking away from the bench and down the dirt path. Ryo and Dylan also had gotten up and were about to walk away, but Data had turned around.

"Expect to see more of us, by the way. If you're lucky then you might be able to Code himself."

"**The** Code?"Dylan asked.

"Yeah, I've been working with him for quite awhile now, and he usually only sends me out on his main projects," Data replied.

He turned back around and walked through the door to the hotel. Ryo and Dylan looked at each other and shrugged then walked back into the hotel. They waved to the receptionist as they walked out of the front of it.

"It's almost lunch time we should get something to eat,"Dylan said.

Ryo stretched and looked at his watch.

"What do you have in mind, buddy?"

"We passed a ramen vendor on the way here."

"Okay, sure."

Ryo checked his wallet. He had $74 left. He put his wallet back into his pocket and they were off.

"I'll have it ready in a few minutes,"the vendor said.

Ryo and Dylan thanked the man and walked over to a table.

"I'm kind of hungry now," Ryo commented as they sat at the table.

"Mind if a sit here?"someone said nearby.

Ryo looked over and it was the guy from the library.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd still think he was following me,"Ryo said to himself.

He scratched his cheek and glanced over his shoulder. He was sitting with one of the most beautiful women Ryo had ever seen. Ryo guessed her age was just past 21. She had light blond hair that even the comparison of the sun's rays breaking through the clouds couldn't do justice to. Her figure was slender to the point of perfection without going over board. She had skin that seemed to have been untouched. She wore a white and very clean dress. It was almost a robe, but was more decorated then a robe would be.

"Some guys have all the luck,"Ryo commented under his breath.

He looked back at the table, but the food had not yet arrived, he looked back over at the table where the guy and woman was before.

"Yeah the meeting was a success,"The guy from before had said.

"That's good,"the woman replied with a smile on her face.

"I'll be getting busy pretty soon, but for now it's nice to just relax."

"Just don't become a couch potato."

"I don't plan on."

_What are they talking about?_ Ryo thought to himself. He turned back around since the ramen was done and on the table.

As Ryo ate his ramen the guy and girl from the table came over.

"Ryo Kuinichi, right?"The guy said.

Ryo almost choked on his ramen.

"How do you know?"he asked.

His tounge hanging our from being burned and it cause his voice to sound funny.

"I'm one of Code's assistants as well. I'm Orion,"he said.

"And I'm Eclipse,"the woman had said.

"I'll be working with you from now on, somewhat anyways,"Orion replied.

"Those names, Orion and Eclipse, are code names also, right?"Dylan replied.

He had finished his ramen and it was sitting to the side.

"You got the idea,"Orion replied.

"So, how will you two be helping us?"Ryo asked.

"First off, you shouldn't eavesdrop, Ryo,"Orion said.

Ryo laughed nervously and scratched his cheek.

"And Orion here is going to be playing "The World","Eclipse said.

"And what about you?"Ryo asked Eclipse.

"Well I don't know if Code will assign me anything yet."

"It's time go,"Orion said to Eclipse.

Eclipse nodded and Ryo watched as they walked over to a navy blue town car. After getting in they drove off.

"Orion, Data, and Eclipse, C-O-D-E. I think that's it for assistants. Data must manage data, and probably gathers it. Orion is a legendary hunter in Roman myths, and he's helping us in "The World". I wonder what Eclipse does,"Dylan said.

"You know I just realized, we could have asked for a ride,"Ryo said returning.

He had just thrown away the ramen cups. A silence had befallen the two, Dylan not really caring, and Ryo hating the irony.

"What do we do now?"Ryo asked.

"Start walking home."

"You're joking right?"Ryo replied with a sweatdrop going down his head.

Ryo stood there as Dylan began walking down the sidewalk. He sighed and began walking also.

"One of us really needs a car,"Ryo mumbled.

"By the way, Ryo, unless the time comes where we really need to mention it. Let's keep our knowledge hidden from Skyld and AnakinseZ. If they haven't told you about what happened before, there's probably a reason behind it,"Dylan mentioned.

"Huh? 'If they haven't told you'?"Ryo asked.

"This whole incident **is** centered around you,"Dylan answered.

* * *

Hopefully the plot is evolving nicely even if it is rather slow at the moment. I'm roughly going to guess that this story will break 30 chapters easily. Reviews, comments, suggestions are all welcome. 

Next Chapter's-  
Plot Progression:Barely progress  
Importance:semi-important chapter  
Things to look forward to:A new minor character, secret event  
Balance:99 in "The World"


	13. Chapter 13:Sidetracked

Well more than likely I'll be gone all weekend, and since I have a four day weekend, I decided to celebrate and post two chapters instead of one. Double the weekend, double the chapters...or something like that anyways. So, yeah, it's a bit earlier than usual, but that's a good thing, right? Enjoy.

* * *

Ryo knelt down and opened up the treasure chest. The rumor seemed to be another bogus one, the dungeon was normal, and everything up to the Gott Statue was un-messed with. He sighed and put the loot into his inventory.

"Well, Hedrei, nothing to worry about in this dungeon either,"Coinchii told Hedrei, the second commander in October.

"We've been getting so many rumors, either these AIs are moving around and not doing anything, or it's become too big of news in "The World" and people are jumping on the band wagon of rumor spreading,"Hedrei replied.

His deep voice matched the character well. Hedrei's character was a heavy blade that was quite buff. He had on an armored skirt and shoulder pads, but the rest of body was divided into segments by white lines. In the white lines gray paint covered his skin, he looked like he was made of stone. He put his sword back into the sheath on his back.

The last few weeks had been slow and uneventful. Coinchii had begun to work more with October, by request of AnakinseZ, and they've been checking rumors about the AIs. Coinchii had been out of the hospital for three weeks since the injury and had begun to gain some fame in "The World", but nothing too much. His life in the real world had returned to normal. The season had changed and it was now winter, and winter meant it would be cold soon. He had another meeting with Code's assistants, but no new information had appeared.

In "The World" he had encountered the AIs a few times, but the encounters were short and they hadn't attempted anything new. The AIs did seem to improve as Coinchii had which didn't make Coinchii's job any easier. The ERS meetings had begun to slow down. They only held meetings when something of significance happened.

Coinchii and Hedrei reappeared in town.

"Anything new, sir?" a player had asked.

The player was one of Hedrei's troops.

"No, just another false rumor."

"I was just on my way to the next map, I haven't seen anything, sir."

"Kay, keep me updated if anything happens."

The player nodded and warped away. Hedrei sighed and sat down on the edge of the cliff, they were in Dun Lorieg at the moment.

"Thanks for the help, Coinchii. That's enough for today, you can go now,"Hedrei said.

"I didn't know how much work October did until now,"Coinchii said.

Hedrei chuckled. Coinchii waved to Hedrei and sent a message to Mohi. He then walked over to the Chaos Gate.

"Lambda Server!"Coinchii yelled.

He disappeared and appeared to in another server. He began coming into this time since last week. It was a big well-lit city with towering buildings. The atmosphere was at a night time and there were small walls, about four feet high, that prevented players from falling into the water that surrounded the city.

"Coinchii!"he heard Miryo shout.

He looked over and saw Demon and Mohi with her.

"Heyo,"Coinchii said.

"Any luck with the dungeon?"Mohi asked.

"It was another false rumor,"Coinchii said with a sigh.

"Even though Code's assistants have been helping us, we still haven't made any progress with the AIs,"Miryo said.

They sat down on the edge of a near-by dock.

"At least it's Friday,"Demon said.

He stretched and laid down.

"And Mohi made it to the finals of the Grunty-back competition,"Coinchii said as he flashed Mohi a thumbs up.

"By the way, Zero was looking for you earlier,"Mohi said.

"Who's that again?"

"The one twinblade guy."

"Oh the katar guy?"

"Yeah."

"What did he want?"

"Not sure, he just asked if you were around. We told him you weren't and he just left."

"So what should we do now?"Miryo asked dipping her feet into the water.

Coinchii looked over at Mohi, but Mohi merely shrugged.

"You got any ideas, Demon?"Miryo asked.

Demon was still laying down, eyes closed. If Coinchii didn't know better he'd think Demon was asleep.

"There you are, boy,"a voice said from behind.

Coinchii turned around, already knowing it was Zero.

"You were looking for me?"Coinchii asked.

"Yeah, I was told to pass a message onto you, it's from Momiri,"Zero stated.

"Okay, so what's the message?"Mohi asked.

Zero chuckled.

"If I just gave you the information then I wouldn't be getting anything,"Zero replied with a smirk.

A sweatdrop fell down Coinchii's head.

"What are you getting at?"Coinchii asked.

"Well, people who know me, know I don't do anything for free, there's a small task I want you to do for me, then you'll get the letter,"Zero answered.

Coinchii thought about it for a second. If he did the task then he would have something to do, he'd also get the message he was supposed to get. On the other hand however, Zero was a lot stronger and whatever 'small' task Zero wanted done might not be small.

"I suppose I have no choice, what's the task?"Coinchii finally answered.

"First, we have to go to the Delta server,"Zero said.

"Let's go,"Coinchii said to the others.

"Nope, Coinchii has to do the task on his own,"Zero said with a rather evil looking smirk.

Coinchii didn't bother arguing and agreed. He never won in anything so he didn't see the point. He followed Zero and went to the Delta server.

"There are two items, one of which I want, but I happen to know that these dungeons are also connected. If I try to get one before or after the other item then both of the items will change. I need someone to get the other item as I get first one,"Zero said.

"Why couldn't I bring my friends?"Coinchii pouted.

"Two reasons:One, you could think of it as a test, and two, what goes on in a dungeon is sometimes affected by the number of people in the dungeon,"Zero answered.

"Okay what's the map name?"Coinchii asked.

"You're going to Delta Outgoing Dark Twin Hills, and I'm going to Delta Outgoing Shining Twin Hills,"Zero said.

Coinchii turned to the Chaos Gate.

"Good luck,"he heard Zero say as he warped away.

Coinchii appeared in a grassy field. Aside from the few scattered wind mills it was a pretty barren field. Coinchii looked at the map. While he normally he would have attempted to kill all the monsters, this time he just wanted to get to the Gott Statue so he could finish this pointless task.

He took a step forward, but turned around as he heard monsters coming. A rather buff looking goblin, and a gigantic turtle appeared. The goblin was a faster monster and got up to Coinchii first. Coinchii pulled the sword off his back and tried it into an attack. The Goblin was knocked back a few steps, but recovered quickly. It shoved it's dagger at Coinchii and did a considerable amount of damage. Coinchii stumbled back and used a Healing Potion to recover his missing hit points. He turned around and ran before the turtle could catch up.

He came up to the dungeon entrance and took a rest against the stone wall.

"I knew Zero was strong, but he can solo a dungeon like this?"Coinchii said aloud to himself,"I did decent damage to the monster, but that monster almost killed me in one hit, and it was only a goblin. I'm going to have a hard time getting through the dungeon."

Coinchii sighed and walked down into the dungeon.

After three hell-ish levels he finally came down to the fourth and final level.

"I'm out of supplies, I'm almost dead, and I'm on the hardest level. Curse Zero,"Coinchii said to himself,"I'm almost done though. One fight and I can get to the Gott Statue."

Coinchii got his sword ready and walked into the next room. He broke the two pots in the small cube of a room then walked into the next room. A metal gate slammed down behind him and the portal began to react.

Two of the large turtles appeared.

"I don't even know what half of these monsters are called,"Coinchii grunted as he charged in.

He jumped on the first run running up its hill-like shell. He shoved his sword into the monster's back and jumped back. The other turtled jumped at him, but Coinchii ducked and barely managed to dodge it. Coinchii ran back at the first turtle, flailing his sword. One of the hits caught and Coinchii tried to run around to the back of the monster. The monster kept up and head-butted Coinchii. Coinchii was knocked against the wall and dropped his sword. He saw the turtles running at him, even though their running was still quite slow the small room made them seem fast. Coinchii slid down the wall and landed on his butt. He grabbed his sword and thrust it upward into the first turtle. It turned gray and blew away into dust.

The levels he had gained while getting down were helping, but he still had to avoid getting hit as much as possible. He stood back up and ran over to the other side of the room and rested until the monster got close to him. He then ran, once again, to the other side of the room.

After successfully recovering his hit points he drew his sword back and jumped on the turtle's head. Coinchii slashed into the turtle and managed to get a few good hits, but the turtle head butted the wall which caused Coinchii to fall off. The turtle turned to Coinchii and tried to attack him. Its foot came up and was about to step on Coinchii, but Coinchii slashed at it's ankle causing it to tip over on it's side. Coinchii got up and slashed downwards putting all of his might into an attack on the last turtle. It turned gray and faded.

Coinchii sighed and walked through the remaining rooms. He came up to the chest.

"Well...I guess I'll send a message to Zero, telling him I'm here,"Coinchii said.

In the the real world Ryo hit a few keys and a message popped up.

"Zero, I'm at the chest, let me know when to open it,"Coinchii said.

He sat there and got a reply. It said to wait 20 seconds till after he gets the message to open it. Coinchii counted to 20 and opened the chest and a silver cloud of dust appeared. A weird clown was standing in the chest.

"Congratulations. You and the player Zero are winners of the hidden event! To claim your prize return to town and talk to the Save NPC!"the clown NPC said.

More of dust appeared and as it faded the clown was gone. Coinchii got a message from Zero telling him to return to return Mac Anu. He used a sprite ocarina and warped into the field, he then warped out to town.

"Time to collect our prize,"Zero sang.

He had a cat-like grin. Coinchii was even smiling, he didn't know he was a getting prize. they walked down the stairs and turned right to the save NPC.

"Give us our prizes, old man,"Zero said to the NPC.

"Players Coinchii and Zero, congratulations. Here are your prizes,"the NPC said.

Two chests appeared. Zero opened up his and pulled out a new pair of katars. He grinned and put them on. Coinchii opened his up and pulled out a large black sword. The handle was rough to the touch, but had a nice grip. The blade was two sided and looked to be made of a mixture of obsidian and metal. The sword was called 'Abysmal Blade'. He switched it with the sword he currently had.

"Well now I can tell you your message,"Zero said. He bowed. "Zero, I need you to tell Coinchii to meet me at the riverside spot in Mac Anu. If he doesn't know how to get there then bring him there."

"Wha?"Coinchii asked.

Zero smirked.

"There's some kind of meeting of course, follow me."

Coinchii scratched his head and put his new sword on the back sheath.

Momiri was sitting in a boat as Zero and Coinchii arrived.

"You're late, Zero,"Momiri said.

"I got it done didn't I?"Zero said smirking.

He turned around and left.

"Umm, so you wanted something Momiri?"Coinchii asked.

There was an awkward silence.

"The company, CC Corp, is attempting to work on a program to prevent any effects from the AIs attacks that would affect you in the real world. Since we have nothing to go on we need to collect data from the AIs themselves. Coinchii, I need a favor of you,"Momiri said.

She sounded kind of nervous.

"What is it?"

"We have set up a map that'll scan information on anything that occurs in it. We're going to attempt to lure at least one of the AIs into this map. Since you have the most experience in fighting them. We need you to fight one of them, but you can't defeat them. You need to drag out the battle so we can gather the most information possible. You don't have to help us, it's entirely your decision."

"If I help, I'm going to be protected by this anti-AI thing also, right?"Coinchii asked.

"Of course."

"Then...sure."

"Very well then, thank you for accepting. When everything is in order we'll let you know,"Momiri said with a smile of relief upon her face.

She warped away, leaving Coinchii with nothing to do now. He walked back out to the Chaos Gate and warped back to the Lambda server. The golden rings disappeared and Coinchii was face-to-face with Hinoja.

"It's you!"Hinoja shouted.

"Hello...Hin...Hin-something,"Coinchii said forgetting Hinoja's name.

"It's Hinoja!"

"Oh yeah, that's it. What's up?"

"I'm here to rightfully claim my victory!"Hinoja shouted drawing his sword.

"Victory? You still peeved about the Grunty-back match?"

"Yes!"Hinoja shouted.

He swung his sword at Coinchii who jumped back and landed kneeling down. Coinchii smirked and drew out his weapon. Hinoja ran forward, but was tripped by a spear that came out of nowhere. Coinchii look over and saw it was Orion. His character identical to the real world minus the white undershirt.

"Ryo, did you find anything new?"he asked.

"Can you call me Coinchii, please?"Coinchii said, sighing.

"Bah, that doesn't matter. Just let me know if you've found anything out."

"Not really, I've been checking dungeons, but the rumors aren't so accurate. In fact, none of the rumors have actually been any help. Also we haven't run into the AIs within the last three days."

Coinchii got back up.

"You bastard! You got in my way!"Hinoja shouted at Orion.

Orion swung his spear behind him hitting Hinoja without even looking back.

"Hmm, Code has detected some activity spikes, yet...they don't seem to be doing anything, that or they're doing it in secret,"Orion said as he blocked another attack coming from behind him, once again with-out even looking.

"Any ideas on what to do?"Coinchii asked. He was more occupied with watching Hinoja get embarrassed from his humiliating, one-sided match.

"Not at the moment, but do you know anything from CC Corp?"Orion said.

He finally seemed to tire of Hinoja. He turned around and blocked another attack then used the non-bladed end of his spear to hit Hinoja upside the head. Orion ducked, effortlessly dodging an attack, then hit Hinoja in the head with the same side of his spear. As Hinoja slashed downwards Orion stepped to the side causing Hinoja to attack nothing more then the air and the ground. Orion sighed and readied his spear so he could hit Hinoja in the stomach, still with the non-bladed side. Hinoja attempted another strike, but Orion made his attack first. This time he stumbled back a few steps only to get hit with a final blow before falling over the edge of the rail and into the water.

"Well, Ryo?"Orion asked walking back over.

"You can't just call me Coinchii? Anyways actually they're planning to make a protection program against the AIs,"Coinchii answered.

"Protection program?"Orion asked sitting against the short wall.

"They're planning to get some data about the AIs and attempt to create a program that'll prevent damage to anyone in real life."

"It's going to fail."

"Huh?"

"I said it's going to fail. Trust me, Code tried the same thing,"Orion replied.

"He tried to make a protection program?"

"No, he tried getting data on the AIs. He found out there's something in the data, that will, well, screw your computer up."

Coinchii thought about it for a second. _Screw your computer up...Perhaps the power outage was caused from a bug in his computer after attempting to scan the AIs data, but even if it was the case then why would it effect the power plant? Wait if he was scanning the AIs, then it couldn't have possibly been related._.

"So, you're saying there's no way to gather data on the AIs?"Coinchii asked.

"If Code can't do it, then no one can."

"Whys that? I know he's good, but do you really believe in him that much?"

"I've met Code in person, don't let his looks fool you though. His plane of thought is beyond anything known before. You ever hear about Sherlock Holmes? He was a super sleuth created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Sherlock was amazing with perception, observation, a deduction."

"I vaguely remember hearing about him."

"Well then, let me tell you. Sherlock had an assistant sort-to-speak called Watson. When he first met Watson, Sherlock already knew who Watson was, where he came from, how he came to town, and what he used to do before came here. All just by clues on Watson's person, and all of this was instantly known to Sherlock just by one quick glance."

"So, Code's like Sherlock?"

"Heh, no...Code is better then Sherlock. Code is capable of deduction along the same level, but on top of that he's more knowledgeable. Also Code is capable of doing things that even a Super Computer is incapable of, all with his mind. He doesn't even need that great of a PC, since he can do anything manually."

"It sounds like you really admire him,"Coinchii said.

"Yeah, if you ever get to meet him, then you'll know why, but I've wasted your time. I got to go now,"Orion said standing up.

He nodded to Coinchii and left. The talk about Code left Coinchii both interested and anxious. Now more then ever he felt like meeting Code. Coinchii looked at the ground lost in thought for a moment, then logged out.

Ryo took off his headset. He looked over at the clock on his wall. It was almost midnight. He leaned back in his chair quietly.

_'Heh, no...Code is even better then Sherlock. Code is capable of deduction along the same level, but on top of that he's more knowledgeable. Also Code is capable doing things that even a Super Computer is incable of, all with his mind. He doesn't even need that great of PC, since he do anything manually.'Yet...Code is having trouble. He's a legendary hacker and he's apparently gifted with seemingly inhuman intelligence, but even he's having trouble. "I've met Code in person, don't let his looks fool you though." I wonder what he looks like, that would cause Orion to say that. _

Coinchii was lost in thought. He stood up and walked over to his sword rack along the far side of his room. He picked up one and sat down on his bed. While thinking he kept pulling out the sword from its scabbard, and replacing it.

"I probably shouldn't sweat it to much for now, but Code sounds like an impressive person. I hope I can meet him,"Ryo said.

After returning the sword he got undressed down to his boxers and climbed under his blankets.


	14. Chapter 14:Gruntyback Finale

Ryo awoke the next the morning to the sound of his cellphone ringing. He yawned, stretched, and rubbed his eyes. The cellphone continued ringing, so Ryo picked it up from the table next to the bed. He opened and hit the button to acknowledge the call.

"Hello?"Ryo said in a half-asleep voice.

"Ryo, I got an e-mail about the grunty-back finals and semi-finals. It's invitation only, since there are so many players in "The World". Hurry up and log on,"the other person, obviously being Suichi, said.

"Eh, right, okay...Do I have to log on now?"Ryo asked yawning

"Hurry and do whatever you're doing then,"Suichi said.

The phone hung-up. Ryo picked his body up off the bed and slowly made is way towards his dresser. He grabbed his usual outfit, but this time went to the closet to retrieve a jacket. Ryo pulled the zipper down on the black, cotton jacket so he could pull it off the clothes hanger, then went downstairs. He figured Skyld would probably be one of the finalists. If so then Suichi would have a tough time, but Ryo wondered who the other people would be. He nodded to his mother and Hiro as he walked around the base of the stairs into the hallway.

He stopped at the bathroom and walked in. He removed what he was currently wearing and turned on the hot water in the shower. He walked inside flinching from the scalding hot water, but turned the cold water knob to even it out. Ryo had begun to think about the AIs as he stared at the wall in front of him. Everyone in the group knew of the four AIs, and most of them had at least ran into one of them, but neither of the four were the boss. Kiiro, Aqua, Jade, Pyro. Yellow, blue, green, red. Manipulator, Master, Morpher, and Manifester. They were also capable of mixing their powers, but alone there seemed to be no link in their powers to lead to what the leader would be like.

Ryo finished his shower and turned off the water. He dried off, got dressed, went back to his room, and started up his computer, then the Altimit system. He had no new mail so he logged on.

Coinchii appeared back in Carmina Gadelica, the Lambda Server. After letting out a yawn and stretching and he looked around.

"He got me out of bed and he isn't even here?"Coinchii said aloud to no one.

There was a ping sound, Coinchii had mail. He opened it up and read it. It said to go the Delta server and shout 'Gruntyback, Mohi!' at the Chaos Gate to get warped to the place for the competition. He turned around to the Chaos Gate.

"Delta server..."Coinchii said sleepily at the revolving ring. He was whisked away and appeared in Mac Anu, but only to go quickly leave again.

"Gruntyback, Mohi!"Coinchii forced himself to shout.

He appeared by a door at the end of a stone hallway. He walked down the hallway and looked around. It appeared to some sort of arena. To Coinchii it sort of resembled a cross between a medieval jousting arena and the roman Colosseum. The seats were already pretty crowded by various players.

"Coinchiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"he heard Miryo's voice ring out.

He looked around and saw his friends waving him to come over. Coinchii sat down next to Demon and Miryo with good timing. Kain, Gyuni, Ace, and Cuoka were also there.

"Good morning, noon, evening, night, or whatever. Welcome combatants and guests to the grunty-back semi-finals and finals!"Venus began.

Cheers roared from the audience almost drowning out Venus. Coinchii looked over at the stage. He could see Mohi in a seat on the stage with the other seven combatants He expected Momiri to be the announcer, but figured she was probably busy.

"The eight people behind me are the top eight grunty-back fighters. They have trained vigorously with their grunty and show the best skills of the new grunty-back system!"

More cheers came from the crowd, including Mohi's cheering squad.

"Now let's introduce them and get some words! First up, you all know him, the legend of "The World", Skyld, the Master Knight!"Venus half shouted into the microphone. Skyld stood up and walked over to Venus.

"Hey everyone, not much to really say, but good luck to the other contestants, I hope for a good match,"Skyld said looking out of the side of his eyes at the other contestants. Venus took the microphone again.

Cheers began to drown out Venus's voice now. Coinchii couldn't make out the names of the next few fighters, but Mohi was the seventh fighter. They were still unable to hear but were shouting at the top of their lunges.

"Mohi! Go! Mohi! Go!"Coinchii and company began chanting

It was hard to tell what Mohi said, but he sat down shortly afterwards. After the last person Venus pulled out her clipboard and hit a few things with her fingers. She began to speak into the microphone again.

"If you avert your eyes to the opposite side of the arena you'll see the rankings,"Venus began. Her voice was louder now so whatever she did probably increased the sound of the microphone. "Now since I can tell you guys want to begin, we shall. Stage one, round one, Skyld verse Gama92!"

Skyld and another blademaster stood up and jumped off the stage.

"Call your grunties,"Venus order, taking the microphone off it's stand.

The two grunties appeared and combatants got on. Once they both reached opposite sides of the oval arena they were given the order to start.

Skyld withdrew his sword as his grunty began to run forward. Gama92 began forward at a slower pace. They closed in at each other, a look of determination on Skyld's face. They came within yards of each other, then feet. Skyld stood on the back of his grunty and lunged forward. He slashed at the blademaster only to be blocked. Skyld hung in the air for a second before flying forward again and landing on his grunty who was patiently waiting.

"Ready for the second go?"Skyld asked. Their grunties were turning to face each other

They ran forward again, swords out. There was a clash as the swords met and they passed each other. Skyld looked over his shoulder as Gama92 came running at him.

"Now!"Skyld shouted pulling on the reins of his grunty.

The grunty jumped up turning upside down in mid-air. The opposing blademaster was caught off guard and was knocked off. Skyld's grunty flipped back over and landed.

The crowd let out a cheer as Skyld returned back to the stage. His grunty walked away to await the next round.

"An impressive victory by Skyld, the Master Knight!"Venus shouted, motioning for Skyld to come over.

She handed Skyld the microphone. "That was nothing, I was just lucky I decided to train my grunty to jump." He bowed and walked over to sit down. The next two rounds passed with as much excitement as the first. Coinchii and his group began a thundering cheer as Mohi stepped off the stage and mounted Smoke.

"Victory! Go Mohi! Victory! Go Mohi!" the group's cheer became.

A sweatdrop fell down Mohi's head as he got in position.

"And...go!"Venus shouted.

The heavy axewomen seemed too small to ride her grunty, but charged forward.

"Turn your side to her and get ready to run,"Mohi whispered into Smoke's ears. Smoke obeyed.

"Ani Kruz!"Mohi shouted. Skulls surrounded the heavyaxe and hit her, but she remained on her grunty. Mohi attempted to cast it again, but was forced to move when the heavyaxe began to attack.

"Rue Zot!"she shouted. Chunks of ice shot out of the ground sending Mohi and Smoke flying.

He grabbed on to Smoke's saddle and positioned himself on Smoke's back. Although at an angle Smoke managed to land on his feet. Mohi ducked under an attack and ordered Smoke to run. The crowd began to cheer for the amazing recovery. Mohi began to grin, unable to resist the applause. The heavyaxe caught up to Smoke, clinging as though they were glued.

"Persistent...Ani Rom!"Mohi shouted. A dark vortex appeared slowing down the heavyaxe and damaging her.

"Rue Zot!"she shouted again. Mohi didn't wait for the spell and threw his staff at her. The chunks of ice appeared from beneath the ground throwing Smoke to his side and sending Mohi in the air. He glanced up as he suspended in the air and saw his staff catch her in the side pushing her off. Gravity began pulling on him again and began to fall to the ground. There was a thud just before he hit the ground.

Mohi sat up and listened to the applause.

"That was a very close match, but to the victor goes the spoils! Mohi moves to the semi-finals!"Venus announced.

Mohi sighed and pulled himself together. He rocked his head back and forth while humming as he stepped back up to the stage. Venus handed him the microphone as he stepped on the stage.

"Well, it was a close match. I think I just got lucky,"Mohi said, modestly.

He was rubbing the back of his head and had a nervous grin.

"Okay there will be a short intermission before the semi-finals and finals, take care of any needs you have now, this is the last break before the climax,"Venus said. She bowed and walked over to the four remaining combatants

"If you guys want, you can go and see your friends while we're in intermission."

Mohi ran up some stairs and into the audience.

"Hey Mohi is coming," Ace said leaning forward waving. The group ran down and met him half way

Coinchii laughed crazily hugging Mohi.

"Eh, hello Coinchii,"he replied trying to push Coinchii away.

"Congratulations, well played out there,"Demon said.

"Yay! Soon you'll get your hands on that prize!"Gyuni shouted clinging to the dark wavemaster.

"Well I still have to beat Skyld. He's going to be tough," Mohi said scratching the back of his head looking away.

"I'm sure you'll give him a run for his money in the least,"someone said out of nowhere. AnakinseZ stepped out of the other audience members and joined the group.

"If I even manage to do that much I'll be proud."

"You're underestimating yourself, Mohi,"Coinchii said grinning.

"He does have a point, Coinchii. Skyld is powerful. It might not be impossible to pull off a win, though,"Miryo said.

"Skyld's been playing for years, I doubt he'll lose. Not that I'm trying to be pessimistic,"Ace replied.

"Well Skyld's in this for the fun, really. Mohi, give him a good match and he may let you win,"AnakinseZ said.

"Isn't that like cheating?"Cuoka asked.

"Not really, I mean different people play "The World" for different reasons. So 'winning' in "The World" really depends on who's playing. Mohi why did you join the grunty-back competition?"

"Hmm, I guess I never really planned on winning, I just wanted to have fun and enjoy it,"Mohi replied, looking over in curiosity.

"Well, if you have fun and enjoy yourself then don't you win, whether you're the last person in the contest or not?"

"Your right...it doesn't matter if I beat Skyld or not, at least to me anyways."

AnakinseZ smirked. "That's exactly why you might beat Skyld after all. Think about what he said at the beginning."

"Hey everyone, not much to really say, but good luck to the other contestants, I hope for a good match,"Skyld said looking out of the side of his eyes at the other contestants. Venus took the microphone again.

"He said he hoped for a good match, so all he expects out of this tournament is...well...a good match,"AnakinseZ finished.

"What you're saying is he doesn't care about being the last person in the tournament and beating everyone. If I can give him a good enough match then we'd both win, and I'd take the tournament. If he let me that is."

There was a silence as Mohi thought about what AnakinseZ said.

"Back, did I miss anything?"Cuoka asked looking around. He must have left his computer to do something.

Everyone had a sweatdrop go down their head.

"The intermission will finish shortly, please finish anything you're doing,"Venus said into the microphone.

Everyone turned back to Mohi.

"Well...I guess even if I get beaten, I still win anyways. So...even if I don't beat Skyld, there are no regrets,"Mohi said looking over at AnakinseZ.

"Will combatants return to the stage before the intermission ends, we'll be starting shortly."

"I'd wish you good luck, but you don't need it. Instead I'll say: Have fun,"AnakinseZ said. He walked back into the audience.

"I guess that settles it then. Victory or defeat it won't matter,"Mohi said.

He waved to the grouped and began to run to his seat. Coinchii's group returned to their seats as well.

"It would be nice to get the prize, though,"Gyuni said, adjusting the robe by her feet.

"That was a very deep moment,"Coinchii said nodding.

Everyone had a sweatdrop go down their head.

"That's so like you Coinchii,"Miryo said, shaking her head in disappointment.

"Alright everyone the intermission is over. And the semi-finals start now!"Venus announced.

"The combatants are as follows:first Skyld, second Carrot, third AlphaWave, and fourth Mohi. First match of the semi-finals, Skyld against Carrot. Please summon your grunties." The two obeyed and got into position. "Go!"

The wavemaster, Carrot, pointed his staff into the air.

"Rai don!" he shouted. Lightning struck but was deflected.

"Nice try, but you'll have to do better,"Skyld said. He slashed down, but Carrot put his staff up in time to block the attack.

"How do you have a thunder tol?"Carrot asked, retreating on his grunty.

"It's a special item, Rai Shield, that grants thunder tol for a short while. It's not a common item. They still make them, but on average probably only eight players at a time will have one?"Skyld answered.

"I see,"Carrot replied.

The two grunties stopped and turned towards each other. They began to charge forward. Carrot seemed determined, although slightly scared. With a quick thrust Skyld managed to strike Carrot off his grunty. Skyld waited for the announcement, but after a short pause he didn't hear the announcement. He looked back and saw Carrot holding on to the back of his grunty. He was holding onto the tail with his feet and the rest of body was clinging to the grunty's side. A few chuckles came from the crowd and some applause. Skyld grinned.

However, he didn't let Carrot take advantage of the moment. Skyld ordered his grunty to run over. Carrot was unable to get up so one vertical slash knocked him onto the ground with a thud.

"Winner of the semi-finals, first round, Skyld, the Master Knight!" Venus shouted.

Carrot shook Skyld's hand and left for the crowd. Venus dragged Skyld over by the microphone when he got on the stage.

"So, Skyld, you're in the finals, anything you want to say to the two people who might be fighting you next?"Venus asked.

"Well, it's been okay so far. Hopefully whoever I go against gives me a better match then the last two. They were fun, don't get me wrong, but not what I was hoping for,"Skyld said.

He went to sit down. Mohi looked over at AlphaWave. He was a blademaster that wore what looked like typical knight's armor.

"Now for the semi-finals, second match! AlphaWave and Mohi mount your grunties and get ready."

The two obeyed. Venus announced go and they were off.

AlphaWave began running full speed towards Mohi. The speed of his grunty was amazing. It was easily faster than Smoke by at least four or five times. Trying to out run him would be impossible.

"Ani Rom!"Mohi shouted.

The ground around AlphaWave formed a giant black circle, freezing him.

"This...isn't Ani Rom...could it be?"Mohi whispered to no one.

He reached into pocket and the orb from the hunting event appeared. It was like a miniature sun about the size bowling ball.

"What's this?"AlphaWave shouted, followed by a few a grunts.

Mohi looked back up. Instead of a swirling vortex, he saw black mist shaped like arms covering AlphaWave. He was pulled down into the dark circle and the circle disappeared. There was a silence in the crowd. Skyld was even staring over surprised. Coinchii and his group was more then just 'on the edge of their seats'. There was silence throughout the arena.

"Where...did he go?"Venus said aloud into the microphone, but it was probably her more thinking it.

A large black ball appeared in the air above where AlphaWave was, everyone looked at it. It was only there for a few seconds then it faded, leaving AlphaWave and his grunty behind. They both fell to the ground with a thud. Mohi looked back at the orb, it was no longer glowing.

"Err, wow, impressive victory. The winner looks like Mohi,"Venus said, as sound began to return to the silent people in the area.

The applause started off slowly but picked up. AlphaWave pushed himself off the ground and sat up. Mohi offered a hand to help him up.

"Eh, I'm fine. That was an impressive attack, how did you do it?"AlphaWave asked, is voice seemed to be young, maybe around 13.

He stood up on his own, he seemed fine.

"Umm I think it was this item,"Mohi said, showing AlphaWave to the orb from the event.

"Ah, this is the prize from the event awhile back. Where you had to kill the golden Wizard, right?"

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"I'm pa-"AlphaWave tried to start, but Venus interrupted.

"Nice to see good sportsmanship, but come on up Mohi. We're gonna get some words then we have to the finals to do."

Mohi got onto the stage.

"Can't really think of anything to say, besides; I didn't expect that attack either,"Mohi said into the microphone.

Venus motioned for Skyld to come over.

"So, Mohi, how's it feel going up against Skyld, the Master Knight?"Venus asked.

"Umm, not any different then any other opponent. I'm having fun, that's all I really wanted,"Mohi said.

"How about you, Skyld? How does it feel going against a wavemaster with an attack like what we just saw?"

"I'm expecting a very interesting match to say the least. I already know Mohi some, I expected a good match before I saw that, but now. I'm expecting a great match,"Skyld said.

Skyld put out his hand, Mohi took it, and they began to shake for a nice match.

"One last question, before we begin. Mohi, what are your thoughts on winning?"Venus asked.

"Err, I wouldn't mind winning, but it's not my ultimate goal,"Mohi answered.

"And you, Skyld?"

"I suppose it's the same as Mohi's. Winning isn't my ultimate goal, I was just looking for a challenging opponent, and I think this will be it."

"Ah, you have to marvel at these two players. Driven not by hopes of winning, but by minor wants, non-materialist wants... I'll stop now. Anyways you two, now go mount your grunties!"Venus shouted, rubbing the back of her head.

The two obeyed. The walked to opposite sides of the arena.

"Are you two ready?"Venus asked.

They both gave a thumbs up.

"Then...go!"

The two grunties took off. Skyld's grunty began towards Mohi, but Mohi's grunty turned right and began to run.

Skyld pulled out a scroll which began to glow black. "Ani Don!"he shouted.

A mass of skull appeared above Mohi and began to lower down towards him. Mohi quickly slid up towards Smoke's neck and laid back.

"Ani Kruz!"he shouted. Skull group of skulls began to appear around Mohi and started to converge, but instead of hitting himself it collided with Ani Don spell canceling both spells out.

Mohi sat up and returned to the normal position on his grunty. He pulled out the orb as Skyld began charging. By the expression on Skyld's face Mohi knew he had noticed the orb.

"Ani Rom!"Mohi shouted. The ground around Skyld began to turn dark which caused Skyld to have his grunty jump out of the attack.

Mohi's grunty charged towards the location where Skyld's grunty was going to land. Skyld pulled out another scroll quickly

"Rue-"Skyld began before being cut off.

"Ani Kruz!"Mohi shouted.

Mohi used the orb with the spell and it began to shine again. Instead of the usual skulls they were now balls of darkness about the size of a bowling ball. The closed in and attached to Skyld. He and his grunty landed on the ground.

"Rue Zo-"

Skyld was cut-off by the black orbs. They had grown and merged into one into one larger ball with Skyld stuck in it. The ball slowly began to dissolve leaving Skyld and his grunty slightly off balance and looking very disoriented. Mohi ran forward and swung with his staff, but Skyld blocked it at the last minute. The blade of Skyld's sword went in between the two snakes on Mohi's staff. It continued in and got caught on guard of the sword. Skyld twisted the staff causing Mohi to lose grip with one of his hands, but Skyld's plan backfired and unless he wanted to lose the match he wouldn't be able to move. His sword was now pointing under his own grunty, still locked in Mohi's staff.

"Looks like it's going to be a tie. If either of us move we'll end up losing,"Skyld said. His eyes glanced over to Mohi, but not more of a curiosity than anything was in his eyes.

"Maybe,"Mohi replied.

Mohi's hand went behind his back. He had taken a scroll out of his inventory. Behind his back it began to glow green.

"But...maybe not,"Mohi said, grinning. "MeJuk Zot!"

The ground began to rumble and Skyld dropped his sword and jumped back. The trees appeared sweeping up the two grunties and Mohi. They were tossed into the air and began to fall. However the spell was a stronger form of Juk Zot so another set of trees popped out of the ground after the first sending them back into the air once more.

Skyld landed on the ground kneeling down. He looked over as the two grunties and Mohi fell on the ground. There were scuff marks on their body from the battle, but most of it was probably from the last move.

"And the winner of the grunty back tournament!"Venus began.

The cheers picked up. They were becoming increasingly loud, probably the loudest they had been the entire day.

"Mohi!"Venus's voice was barely audible.

"So after we get some more information on your character you'll get the item. Is that okay with you, Mohi?"Venus asked.

The gruntyback event had been declared closed earlier and they were discussing the prizes.

"Of course. I have no problems,"Mohi replied.

Coinchii's group, Skyld, and AnakinseZ walked over.

"You won!"Gyuni shouted, jumping on Mohi.

"Congratulations,"Skyld and AnakinseZ said, almost at the same time.

"Nice job,"Demon said his usually monotone voice.

"I told you would win,"Coinchii replied, taking his turn to congratulate Mohi.

"You deserve it,"Miryo hummed.

"Yeah, I wish I coulda competed,"Kain replied.

"Now you get to learn about the troubles famous people go through. When you need help feel free to request it,"Cuoka replied.

Mohi had a sweatdrop fall down his head.

"That was an awesome win,"Ace said, finishing off the congratulations.

"Thanks everyone,"Mohi replied.

He was grinning rubbing the back of his head. Venus bowed to everyone and warped away.

Coinchii pulled Skyld over to the side.

"I was curious, did you let Mohi win?"Coinchii asked, looking out of the corner of his eyes.

"Eh, was it that obvious?"Skyld answered with a question of his own.

"Well the last move did make it seem kind of obvious, but then again AnakinseZ said that you would've if you got a good match. That my be why it seemed obvious,"Coinchii replied. His arms were folded and he was nodding to nothing in particular.

"Well he did deserve it, and I don't like being in the spotlight all the time. I guess if anyone says anything I'll dismiss it as a mistake,"Skyld replied.

Coinchii walked over to the edge of the walkway and stared off into the far distant waters.

"Well now that the gruntyback competition is over, I guess this means there won't be as many distractions,"Coinchii replied.

"Eh, what do you mean by that?"Skyld asked, walking over also.

"In looking for those AIs,"Coinchii replied.

"Yeah, it was a nice little diversion,"Skyld said.

"What are you two talking about?"AnakinseZ asked.

AnakinseZ and Mohi had walked over.

"Nothing much,"Skyld said.

Coinchii yawned.

"It must be getting late. I think I'll call it a night,"Coinchii replied.

After saying their goodbyes he logged off.

* * *

And so ends the gruntyback competition and most of the grunty based action. This is of course if you liked the grunties, and if so, you can let me know through reviews, comments, ect. which are as always welcomed.(It's sad that's like a qoute of mine now...) And also marks the start of what I guess would be considered the lead-in to the next 'section' of the story.

Next Chapter's-  
Plot Progression:Hard to say, it depends on how you look at it, I suppose.  
Importance:Two words:Flashback chapter  
Things to look forward to:...points at above two words  
Balance:Real World only


	15. Chapter 15:Parent Block

Another weekend another chapter, I suppose this point would be considered a new section where it more or less begins to take a turn plot-wise. Enjoy

* * *

"Sunday Sunday Sunday!"Ryo said, as he walked into his living room. 

"Ryo, come on that's so old,"his mother said, waving her hand back forth as though something stunk.

"Hey,"Ryo pouted.

"Anyways, Ryo, I've been meaning to talk to you,"his mother said.

She picked Hiiro up off her lap and put him on the couch. Ryo followed her as she walked into the hallway.

"What's going on?"Ryo asked, curious of course.

"It's about the game I let you buy, "The World" I think it's called. You spend so much time on it,"she said.

"It's because my friends play it,"Ryo protested.

"It's not healthy to be playing it for so long you missed all three meals yesterday."

"I..uh.."Ryo couldn't think of anything to say which would counter the comment.

His stomach rumbled. It was as if that comment were a password and he suddenly realized he was hungry.

"Well...the thing about it is,"Ryo began, stalling for time.

"Is...?"his mother continued.

"Is..."Ryo said once again.

His mother stared at him, a sweatdrop going down her head. Ryo scratched the back of his head. _Now would be a perfect time for someone to call, but do they? No. That so didn't work like it does in movies._ Ryo thought to himself.

"The thing is,"Ryo finally began again,"that...umm Suichi, Dylan, and Sakura play "The World" as well. And they play just as often as I do."

"Is that so?"Ryo's mother commented, one of her eye brows raised.

Ryo gulped. He had no clue what was going through her mind.

"In that case I'm going to talk to their parents. As for you Ryo Kuinichi, no playing "The World" until further notice,"she said, folding her arms.

Ryo's eyes became big and started watering.

"That isn't going to work, Ryo."

Ryo returned to normal.

"I can try, can't I?"Ryo asked.

"Make sure you eat breakfast before you leave,"his mother said, bringing some bread over to a toaster.

"I'll pick something up on the way to Suichi's house. Is that fine?"Ryo asked.

"Just make sure you actually eat something."

"I know. In that case I'll be back later,"Ryo replied.

He walked outside it was cold now and snow had begun to fall. It was only the start of winter so there wasn't much snow at first. Ryo put his hands in the pocket of his zip-up hoody. No "The World" until further notice, it messed up Ryo's plans for the day. Suichi's house was a few blocks away, a good 10 or 15 minute walk.

The walk was an uneventful barely anyone was out, it was winter and in the morning. He stepped up to Suichi's door. His house was bigger then Ryo's. Both houses had two stories, but Suich's had more length and width to it. Ryo opened the screen door and took two steps forward, reaching for the front door. The doorbell was loud, Ryo could hear it outside. There was a pause and someone finally opened the door.

"Hello, Mr. Mohi,"Ryo said to Suichi's dad.

"Hey Ryo, come on in, make yourself at home, Suichi will be down shortly."

"Thanks,"Ryo said, walking in.

Suichi's dad walked into a different room, but Ryo decided to stay in the living room.

They must have recently redecorated the living room seemed more 'lodge-ish' then Ryo last remembered. The fire place was alight, it's glow was cast on everything in the room. There were two couches, both a red and brown mixture of color, sitting at an angle to eachother. A glass coffee table in the middle. On the opposite side of the couches was a recliner. A piano behind the couches. The TV was off in a corner.

Ryo sat down in the couch. He removed his hand from his jacket and folded them across his chest. Suichi came down after a moment.

"Suichi!"Ryo said, standing up.

"Hey, Ryo,"Suichi said, his face seemed gloomy.

"What's wrong?"

"My parents aren't letting play "The World" for a bit. They said I've been on it too much lately,"Suichi answered.

Ryo gulped and became nervous. It was his fault after all that this happened, but Suichi would've killed him if he found out.

"Wow, what are the odds. Forgetting that, shall we see what Dylan is up to?"Ryo asked quickly, trying to change the subject.

Ryo's cellphone rang at that moment.

"Ryo-kun!"

"Since when am I -kun!?"Ryo shouted.

Suichi was able to figure out who it was. He had a sweatdrop going down his head.

"I learned some honerables this morning. Suichi-san, Dylan-san, Ryo-kun and Kiane-chan,"Sakura explained.

Ryo didn't bother listening and came in at the 'honerables' part. "People only use honerables in Japan, what's with you?"

"They sound so cute though, Ryo-kun!"Sakura said on the other side of the call.

Ryo had a sweatdrop fall down his head, and was slightly blushing.

"Why did you call, anyways?"Ryo replied.

"Oh yeah, I called to tell you. My parents aren't letting me on "The World". They said I played it too much. So I wanted to call you and meet up somewhere."

Ryo began sweating. Was everyone being blocked from "The World"? The only other person was Dylan.

"Ryo, are you there? Ryo?"Sakura was asking on the other side.

"Oh, umm, sorry to hear that. I'm over at Mohi's house and we're about to call Dylan. We'll probably meet at the park,"Ryo answered.

"But it's sooooo cold,"Sakura groaned.

"You could always wear something besides that school girl outfit, ya know,"Ryo said, his head drooping.

"But but but but but,"Sakura began.

"I'm hanging up now, bye Sakura."

"But but-"Ryo disconnected the call.

"Eh, is she not being allowed on also?"Suichi asked.

A sweatdrop fell down Ryo's head.

"Yeah. It's like everyone parent's decided they play "The World" too much,"Ryo said nervously, looking around and scratching the back of his head.

"Let's head out to the park, I'll call Dylan,"Suichi said, putting on his shoes.

"Well anyways we're at the park, come on and head down,"Suichi said before closing his cellphone.

He slipped it back onto the clip on his side.

"Dylan isn't allowed on either."

"I guess that means noone in our group is getting on for awhile,"Ryo sighed.

There was a pause.

"Couldn't they put something on these benches to warm them!?"Ryo finally shouted.

"What the...heck?"Suichi said looking over at Ryo who was squirming on his bench.

"It's so cold,"Ryo whined.

A sweatdrop fell down Suichi's head.

"Ryo-kun! Suichi-san!"Sakura called.

The two looked over. Sakura was now wearing a long blue dress with fluff along around the edges of the exits of the arms and the exits of the bottom. There were balls of fluff going down the middle to make it look like it was buttoned up, but you could easily see it wasn't. She had a long blue scarf on which made her look innocent.

"Hi Sakura,"Suichi said.

"You're in a dress...Sakura, is the only time you've ever worn pants the time you slept over at my house?"Ryo asked.

"I might have worn some when I was a baby, but I like dresses and skirts better,"Sakura replied happily.

"You aren't cold?"Ryo commented.

"A bit chilly, but it is winter after all."

"So, you two, any ideas on what we're doing today?"Suichi asked sliding down in the bench.

His winter apparel was the same as what he usually wore, but with a basic, black trench coat.

"It's not like we can even stay over at someone's house and play,"Ryo replied.

"Where's Dylan-san?"Sakura asked, sitting next to Ryo.

"He's on his way,"Suichi answered.

"Wait, the brat has like 20 computers, maybe we can use his?"Ryo asked.

"Kiane? We don't have his number,"Suichi replied,"and it's not exactly a short walk."

"Hello,"Dylan said, as he approached from the left of everyone.

His wardrobe was still the same.

"None of us are allowed to go on "The World"..."Dylan said.

Ryo couldn't tell if he was repeating it because he couldn't accept it, or repeating it to confirm it.

"It kills our plans for the day,"Ryo replied.

Suichi had a sweatdrop fall down his head.

"That...and one of the AIs could attack any point. They've been a bit too calm lately. They could attack at any point and we can't do anything,"Suichi said, reminding Ryo.

"The others can take care of it, right?"Ryo replied.

"Maybe not..."Dylan said.

"Why do you say that?"Ryo asked. He looked a bit insulted.

"Think about it, they're after Coinchii, correct? You've been drawing their line of fire away from the others and if you aren't there to take attention away from them they might not be able to last."

"Did you just insult or compliment me?"Ryo asked, his head drooping.

"Wait, if Ryo-kun...or Coinchii-kun...or whatever could endure the attacks and get out fine, then shouldn't the others? I mean they are stronger then Coinchii-kun,"Sakura replied.

"Think about the encounters though. The only time time we've pulled off any wins is when we have the enemy outnumbered. With four people out of "The World" that's four less people that can group on the AIs."

"Yeah think about the first fight with Jade, you five were almost owned,"Suichi said.

"This isn't going to be flashback chapter is it?"Ryo pouted.

----------

Demon and Mohi were sitting down against the wall watching the fight. The monster ran towards the five then slammed down it's trunk. Junhi and Shadows jumped to one side and Coinchii, Serene, and Ace jumped over to right. The monster reacted by swinging his trunk towards Junhi and Shadows, it hit Junhi and took out about half of his hp. Coinchii brought his sword over his head and jumped at the monster's neck. It countered by lifting up one of its hands from the ground and smacking Coinchii away like a bug. Serene had gotten behind the monster managed to get a few slashes on it, but it didn't flinch in any pain. Junhi had recovered and was going for the trunk but it was retaliating by flailing it around. It seemed to be swinging wildly and managed to catch Ace off guard, he was hit and knocked into the wall. Coinchii slipped beneath the trunk and was crawling up it's hand. Once on top he resumed to attack various places on the monster's back. The monster soon began to scream in pain from the five fighters. It fell to the ground and the Elite Rogue Squadron had regrouped.

----------

"Damn flashback,"Ryo said under his breath.

"So you do remember,"Suichi said.

"We beat it though didn't we,"Ryo said defending himself.

"It was five against one and the ERS barely managed half of the dodges. When you were hit, you were just knocked out like a rag doll,"Dylan commented.

"We've become stronger since then, though."

----------

"Let me and Skyld handle this monster,"AnakinseZ said.

He reached into his bag and used a resurrect on Serene. Serene ran back over to the group and AnakinseZ and Skyld ran forward to do the attack. The monster lunged at them slashing wildly, but Skyld managed penetrate the the attacks and slashed into monster. It was knocked back but didn't die. AnakinseZ followed up trying to finish it off, but the horizontal slash missed and just hit the wall. The monster stood back up after the attack and and started rapidly slashing into AnakinseZ with its skill. Gyuni cast Repth to recover AnakinseZ's hp. The monster now ran past AnakinseZ to go after Gyuni, but was stopped in it's tracks by Skyld. Skyld shoved his sword into the monster's mid section and flung into the wall. It landed on the ground and blew away like dust.

----------

"That flashback wasn't even about you, that was Skyld and AnakinseZ!"Suichi shouted, aggrevated.

"Fine what about the time when we were fighting Pyro for the first time?"Ryo began.

----------

The other Hell Hound which was fighting Kain turned it's attention and ran at Gyuni. The first Hell Hound was running at Coinchii again who brought his sword over and caught the monster's leg tripping it. Coinchii jumped over the Hell Hound and ran to save Gyuni who was now cornered. He jumped and brought his sword down knocking the monster over. It took a step forward from the impact then fell to the ground. After the Hell Hound disappeared Coinchii turned around to see Kain get head butted and knocked down. He had little HP left. Coinchii pulled out a potion and used it on Kain who dodged to the side of the Hell Hound's next attack. The three quickly regrouped and the Hell Hound became hesitant. Coinchii and Kain attacked at the same time and the triple slash had knocked the monster to the ground where it died shortly afterwards.

----------

"Yeah. It was three against two and those two were normal monsters, though,"Suichi said sullenly.

"The AI's have also gotten stronger. You can't forget that, Ryo,"Dylan said.

"I know...They can even combine powers,"Ryo said.

Chills ran up his back as he remembered the data-absorbing Harpies

----------

There was a Harpy following him and he readied his sword. Coinchii expected the Harpy to come flying up to him but it stopped about 15 feet away. _It can't cast can it!?_ Coinchii thought to himself. There was a silence then the Harpy let out a shriek. A black rope shot out from the Harpy's chest with data floating through it. It narrowly missed Coinchii's right arm. He looked behind him and the dirt from the impact had landed. The ground turned black with a data stream visible as the rope flew back into the Harpy.

----------

"That's exactly why Code-sama had been interested in us, isn't it?"Sakura asked.

"Yeah because these AIs seem to be after us,"Ryo said.

"Mostly you, Ryo,"Suichi corrected.

Ryo sighed.

"Anyways, yeah, we still know next to nothing about Code,"Ryo said.

-----------

"Now that you two are informed, I can explain why Code is so interested in Ryo. You see the A.I.D.A.'s that occurred back then, are 98 similar to the A.I.D.A.'s that happened just now. He's not sure why exactly it waited until now to resurface, if it is the same thing, but whatever it is Code thinks they're after Ryo."

"Weren't they already in the system, before I joined? AnakinseZ said that there were rumors about the AIs,"Ryo replied.

"Well, yes the activity did reappear shortly before you joined, but once you did there was a spike in activity."

"So does Code know why they're after Ryo?"Dylan asked.

"Unfortunately not, that's we resorted to contacting you. It'll be easier to keep in contact and share information, if you know of his presence."

"So how long as he been following us?"

"He started following the AIs about a month or so before you or your friends began playing "The World", but he began to follow Ryo a few days after he joined."

----------

"The worst thing is he's a hacker,"Suichi commented.

"I know hacking can be bad, but it can also be good. Why's that bad?"Ryo asked.

"It's because the administration for "The World" doesn't know we're also working with Code. I don't know how much Code knows about us, but as long as we cooperate I don't think he minds what we do. However, the administration in "The World" might not approve of it if they know we're working with hacker,"Dylan began.

"I get it, you're saying they might think we're behind this for some odd reason,"Ryo said.

"No, Skyld and AnakinseZ are good, they'd vouch for us. What Suichi and I mean is:Think about it. We're basically players in "The World" nothing special about our characters, except Coinchii because he's in the ERS which is part of October. We're working with a legendary hacker and his three assistants, "The World"'s police force, and the administration of "The World". Then on top of that we're still teenagers who have school, duties in the real world, parents who watch us, and the effects from playing "The World". We have to fight against AIs in "The World" and those AIs can hurt is in game and it'll affect us in real life."

"We need to something we can't do which is trying to balance all that out. Remember you were sent to the hospital and you were in there for how long?"Suichi added.

----------

Coinchii looked over at the clock on the hospital wall, it was two in the morning. He laid back on his pillow sighing. The doctors came soon after the call, and brought him to the hospital. They found the cause of the problem, but were puzzled as how he got injured. His leg had suffered muscle and tissue damage, it was similar to burning, but there was no sign of damage on the outside of his leg.

"The only cause I can think of is the fight with that weird harpy, but that was in game,"Ryo said to himself in the darkness," I mean...In the fight it's attack skimmed by my leg, could that really be the cause? Did the hackers somehow find a way to hurt people in real life?"

_Not hackers, AIs._ a voice suddenly said in his head.

----------

"A voice? I thought I was kidding when I said you were crazy, Ryo,"Suichi said jokingly.

"It's not my fualt I've heard it a few other times also. It's me thinking it, but it's like another person with another voice causing me to think it,"Ryo said.

"Ever since Ryo-kun started playing "The World" everything has been crazy for us,"Sakura said.

"Yeah on the first day we played I ran into Skyld and AnakinseZ with him,"Suichi said.

----------

"Who's that?"Coinchii asked.

"Skyld is the best player in "The World", he's a legend."

The two were about to walk over going to say hello, but another character came over.

"So this some other legendary player?"Coinchii asked after seeing the expression.

Mohi sighed.

"That's AnakinseZ, he's the leader of October,"Mohi explained.

His eyes were shaped like stars now. Coinchii took a step back then looked over.

"That's the kind of player I want to be,"he said.

Mohi looked over and Coinchii was gone. He looked back over and saw him running down the stairs towards the two. He managed to trip into the two knocking them over as he reached the bottom step. He sat up bowing and apologizing.

----------

"We've also somewhat become friends with the administrator herself, Momiri-sama,"Sakura added.

"Coinchii, we meet again,"Momiri said with a smile as Coinchii walked over.

"Hiya,"Coinchii replied.

"You hear all that?"Gyuni asked.

"Most of it, yeah,"Coinchii answered, staring blankly.

"Perfect!"Gyuni commented.

Coinchii was invited to a party afterwards.

"Did you get the e-mail, Coinchii?"Momiri's Aid asked him afterwards.

Coinchii rubbed the back of his head in confusion.

"The grunty one? You're Venus?"Coinchii asked looking over.

"Okay then, remember. I hate to be strict but we're tied by the system,"Venus replied scratching her cheek looking up.

"Add down that we have repair the Scroll Shop NPC, and then we'll add notice NPC,"Momiri said to Venus.

----------

"Enough of the flash backs,"Ryo said, sighing,"When a book has a flashback chapter you know something is wrong."

Sakura giggled.

"That's so like you, Ryo-kun,"Sakura replied happily grabbing his arm.

"Maybe we should have some flashbacks about you two,"Suichi said to Ryo.

"I'm content,"Ryo said.

Ryo had given up his attempts at stopping Sakura from doing stuff since a few weeks ago. She was kept rubbing up on his arm as though she was cat.

"Are you sure? She got a whole chapter to herself,"Suichi said.

"That's it I'm out of here. I'm going to check if that Ice Cream vendor is still here,"Ryo said standing up and walking away.

"Ice cream vendor?"Sakura asked.

She was still in the position where she was grabbing onto Ryo's arm.

"Actually Dylan, why were you there that one day?"Suichi asked looking over at Dylan who was leaning against a tree.

"That one day?"Dylan asked, looking up.

"Remember?"Sucih began

----------

"Hey person, can you help me?"Ryo said trying to get the attention of the person.

The guy turned around only for them to realize it was Dylan. Ryo and Suichi were staring wide-eyed and Dylan scratched the back of his head nervously.

"Umm what are you doing?"Suichi finally asked.

"I'm not supposed to socialize..."Dylan replied,"How may I help you today?"Dylan had his eyes closed as though he regretted doing this.

"Umm can I have this one?"Ryo said pointing to a picture of an ice cream cone with chocolate ice cream on the inside, the top was covered by crushed peanuts.

"That's a dollar fifty..."Dylan replied. He handed over the ice cream as Ryo gave him the money.

"Seriously, why are you here?"Suichi asked.

"I can't talk, sorry guys, but could you leave..."Dylan said half sighing. He looked out the side of his eye for a moment. Suichi was wide-eyed in confusion but agreed. Ryo and Suichi left the park and were a block away from the game store.

-----------

"Oh...that...I forget,"Dylan said, cooly.

Suichi fell over.

"You never forget anything you just don't wanna tell me,"Suichi said.

"You really wanna know why I was there?"Dylan asked.

"Yeah."

"You look like your about to cry from anticipation, so I'll tell you,"Dylan began.

"Whew, it was just such a random thing it was bugging me."

"Just because it's winter they don't have an ice cream vendor, what gives!"Ryo shouted.

He hadn't had any luck in finding the ice cream vendor and Ryo was grumbling to himself.

"I bet he's out of business. Not being here, bad service that's why he's out of business."

Ryo sighed and checked his watch. It was about lunch time.

"Maybe I should've gotten something to eat at my house afterall,"Ryo said.

Now his stomach was growling louder. He walked over by Sakura, Suichi, and Dylan again.

"Wow I never would've guessed that,"Suichi said wide-eyed.

"Yeah, it's something I don't exactly like to tlak about though,"Dylan replied.

"Ryo, Dylan just explained what he was doing at the ice cream vendor that one day,"Suichi said to Ryo as he walked over.

"Yeah, that's great and all, but I'm starving so can we go get some food?"Ryo asked.

"That'd be a good idea, I didn't eat at all yesterday and I was so busy getting in trouble this morning I forgot about breakfast,"Suichi said standing up.

"Where to?"Sakura asked.

"I'm fine with anything,"Dylan commented.

The four went to a near-by fast-food restaurant. They continued talking after placing their orders.

"Aside from Pyro and Jade, there was also Aqua,"Dylan said.

"Yeah...me and Ace ran into him."

-----------

"You two are looking for the strange player character?"a woman's voice said from behind.

The two turned around and saw a heavy axeman standing there. She wore a blue skirt and blue top with puffy short sleeves. Her hair was black, and her character was a bit pale. Her hair seemed get longer as it came to the front, where her eyes were red. She carried a huge ax that was at least her size, most likely bigger. It had a brown handle and then a huge four side ax blade.

"Are you two going to keep staring or answer my question?"her voice seemed to be both serious and emotionless at the same time. The two nodded dumbfound.

"We don't know the keywords though,"Coinchii said rubbing his head looking at his shoes.

He suddenly received her member address.

----------

"We didn't even know she was an AI at first."

"Then there was the last AI, Kiiri, who is the most dangerous,"Sakura mentioned.

----------

"So I guess that's my cue to come it," another loud voice rang out echoing through the room.

Another woman walked up behind Pyro and Aqua. She had on a pair of yellow cargo pants, and a tight yellow shirt. She had on a yellow jacket the same color as rest of her cloths, and she had boots coming her ankles, which her pants were tucked into. She had blond hair the came a bit past her shoulders. Her eyes were blue, and she had a big grin on her face.

"Be careful, the two less cute ones are a bit stronger, try to spa-"Pyro began to say until Kiiro interrupted.

"Whatever, stop being so flirtatious,"she said cracking her knuckles.

----------

"We can't forget the most important thing. These four are just working for a fifth AI that we've yet to meet,"Suichi added.

Ryo sighed. "It's a pain being a main character."

* * *

Reviews yada yada welcome, so on. You get the idea by now, I'm sure. 


	16. Chapter 16:Absence

As previously stated, I consider this more or less the next sort of 'section' of the story. The last chapter was more or less a flashback, but after reading this chapter, you'll see why I believe so. On another note, is almost caught up to where I am in the story, once I get there the posts will probably end up slowing down to once per two weeks(unless I manage to finish the chapters quickly amongst other things). But anyways, enjoy.

* * *

"Remember, next week is Winter Break. So don't come to school next week unless you wanna be the only one here. Also Christmas is Monday in case any of you have forgotten,"Mrs. Lavendeur said as she collected the math tests. 

"I think I did pretty good,"Ryo said leaning back in his seat.

"That's because you're talent is in math, surprisingly,"Suichi replied, a sweatdrop falling down his head.

"How was yours?"Ryo asked.

"Ugh...I'll probably be lucky to have an A,"Suichi replied, embarrassed.

"Still passing,"Ryo said.

"Coinchii, sit up right in your seat,"Mrs. Lavendeur said.

She grabbed Ryo and Suichi's papers.

"It's Kuinichi,"Ryo said sighing, and closing in eyes his eyes in disappointment,"I've been your student for around two years yet, you still can't remember my last name?"

There was a silence. Ryo opened his eyes.

"Mrs.Lave-"Ryo began. He cut-off as he noticed she already left.

"Well I suppose being banned from "The World" will make one less thing to worry about. I can enjoy my Christmas,"Suichi commented.

"If we could happen to make contact with the brat, we could probably use his computers,"Ryo said.

"Yeah, but we still have our parents in the way. I know mine would probably be suspicious."

The lunch bell rang.

Suichi and Ryo had sat down and began eating lunch. Ryo's lunch consisted of a ham and cheese sandwich, bag of Cheetos, and can of Sprite. There wasn't much talking as they began eating. Ryo had almost finished his sandwich when Sakura glomped him from behind.

"Ryo-kun!"she practically shouted into Ryo's ear.

"Hi, Sakura,"Ryo replied, his finger in his ear to try and rid himself of the ringing.

"Hello, Suichi-san."

"Heyo, Sakura."

They heard faint screams coming from one of the hallways.

"I guess the fangirls found Dylan,"Ryo said, finishing off the last bite of sandwich.

"Seems like it,"Suichi said.

He pulled his sunglasses off of his forehead and down to his eyes. With a yawn and a stretch he layed down against the tree.

"Sakura, I need to check with you on something,"Ryo said looking over.

Sakura blushed while turning away innocently causing a sweatdrop to fall down his head.

"NOT THAT!"Ryo shouted.

"It's okay Ryo-kun, you don't have to hide for feelings for me,"Sakura said, opening her arms for a hug.

"It's about "The World". You're parents still haven't let you on, have they?"

"Not yet, why?"Sakura replied, her arms drooped down, disappointed.

"If we can find someway to get Kiane's house then we can play on his computers. However our parents can't know we're playing "The World". So if you were just tell your parents you're going to Kiane's house, would they let you?"

"I know my dad would,"Sakura answered.

"Hey, Ryo, did you just say Kiane?"a voice asked out of nowhere.

Ryo turned around and saw a kid tan cargo pants and blue shirt with patches on the elbow. The patches looked like they were there for looks and not to cover holes. His hands were resting in his pockets.

"Hey, I know you,"Ryo said, pointing.

"Eh, we've only had the same class for half a school year,"Tokon said, putting a hand on his forehead.

"Your name is Tokon, isn't it?"Suichi asked.

"Yep, your name is Suichi, if I'm not mistaken,"Tokon replied. "Anyways, you were talking about Kiane just now right? As in Kiane Sumabi?"

"Oh, right. Yeah that's the one,"Ryo replied nodding.

"Yeah he lives about a 10 minute walk away from me,"Tokon said.

He decided to make himself comfortable and sat down indian style resting his arms on his knees.

"Do you think there's a chance we can get a ride with you after school? We need to get to his house,"Ryo asked.

"Sure no problem, he plays with my kid brother all the time, if you get permission from your parents and the office, then you can ride my bus."

Ryo automatically opened his cellphone and began calling his house.

"Good luck, Ryo, I'm going to get ready for christmas you'll have to play without me,"Suichi said.

"Where do we get the bus ride thing at from the office?"Sakura asked.

"I'll take care of that. It's just you and Ryo, right?"Tokon asked.

"Yeah,"Sakura replied.

"What about, Dylan?"Suichi asked.

"He's busy at the moment, and it'll be a hassle explaining everything. Besides I haven't gotten spend time with just Ryo-kun in awhile,"Sakura said, making a cat-like face.

A sweatdrop fell down Suichi's head. Tokon got up and began towards the office.

"Alright I can go,"Ryo said, hanging up his cellphone.

"I need to call my parents too, can I borrow your phone, Ryo-kun?"Sakura asked.

"You have your own,"Ryo replied lazily.

"Yeah, but I don't know how many minutes I have,"Sakura replied.

"Use your own,"Ryo said, glaring.

"Hmph, fine,"Sakura said reluctantly.

Sakura pulled out her cellphone and began to call her house.

"I wonder if anything has happened in the time we've been away,"Ryo said to Suichi.

"Well, I suppose anything could have happened. They're after you...but...you haven't been there. No telling how they'll react,"Suichi said.

"That's true,"Ryo said scratching his cheek.

"Ryo, Sakura, I got permission for you two,"Tokon said walking over.

Sakura hung up her cellphone.

"Daddy let me go,"Sakura said gleefully.

Tokon handed a piece of paper to Sakura and Ryo.

"What do we do with this?"Ryo asked while inspecting the paper.

A sweatdrop fell down Tokon's head.

"Just sign it and give it to the busdriver when you get on,"Tokon answered.

"Well I guess we're set then, thanks a bunch, Tokon,"Ryo said.

"Just remember to wait for me at the end of day,"Tokon said.

Ryo laughed nervously.

The last bell of the day ended.

"See ya later,"Ryo said to Suichi.

Suichi grabbed his backpack while waving and took his leave. Ryo grabbed his stuff then walked over to Tokon.

"Good, you remembered,"Tokon commented,"Well, shall we?"

"Right,"Ryo said, punching the air.

"Where's Sakura's class?"Tokon asked.

They walked out into the hallway taking a right to head towards the back of the school. Now that Ryo actually thought about it, he had no clue where Sakura's classes were. There was a silence.

"I suppose she'll find us, since you don't know,"Tokon commented.

They walked out into central courtyard.

"It's not that I don't know, it's just..."Ryo began.

A sweatdrop fell down Tokon's head as he probably wondered how Ryo was in a gifted class.

"Ryo-kun! Tokon-san!"they heard Sakura scream.

"Sakura! Over here!"Tokon shouted back, waving.

Sakura ran to to catch up them.

"My bus is up here,"Tokon said as they out to the back of school.

They walked down a sidewalk and stepped on a bus.

"New students?"the aged bus driver asked in a rough voice.

"Nah, they're just riding for today,"Tokon replied.

"I take it they have the papers?"the bus driver asked.

Ryo stepped forward and handed the bus driver his paper. He walked over to an empty seat by Tokon and sat down. Sakura handed the bus driver hers and bowed. The busdriver turned back towards the front. This was the first time Ryo had ridden in a school bus. It seemed crowded, two or three people were in every seat. Sakura sat down as the bus started up. It remained in the same spot for a minute or so before leaving.

"Hey Tokon,"Ryo called out.

Sakura and Ryo were a seat behind Tokon in the opposite side. The other voices seemed to cover his and Tokon didn't respond.

"I guess we have to wait until he gets off before we know what bus stop he has,"Ryo muttered. Sakura laid her head on his shoulder.

"Get off of me,"Ryo said, looking at her from the corner of his eyes.

There was a silence

"Nobody falls asleep that fast,"Ryo said.

There was more silence. Ryo began to blush, something about Sakura seemed cute as she laid on his shoulder. Ryo's heartbeat seemed more apparant and his mouth slowly closed. He shook his head and dismissed the thoughts. With a sigh he looked out the window deciding to wait until they had to get off. _It won't kill to me be nice for once, right?_ he thought to himself. The bus ride was uneventful and after getting off they had recieved instructions to Kiane's house and were off.

"Damn, there a lot of scene transitions in this chapter,"Ryo muttered as they arrived at the gate.

Ryo looked through the black, iron, gothic styled gate and confirmed the mansion at the end of the incredibly long drive way.

"So this is Kiane-chan's house?"Sakura asked, holding the side of her hand against her head just above eye level.

"Eh, that's right you haven't been here before, have you?"Ryo replied.

"This is my first time,"Sakura replied pushing a button on the stone wall next to the gate.

In a moment a voice appeared from the speaker above the button.

"Who is it?"the voice replied, probably Jenning's.

"It's Ryo and Sakura, friends of Kiane. I was here once before,"Ryo replied after pressing and holding the button.

"Master Ryo, yes, I remember you. Very well, you may enter,"Jennings replied.

The gate began to open. Ryo pressed the button.

"Thanks,"he said quickly.

The gate closed once they walked in and they made their way up the driveway to the front door.

"Wait,"Ryo said stopping.

"Hmm? What is it, Ryo-kun?"Sakura asked looking back.

"Should we just wait in Kiane's room?"

"Why are you asking me?"Sakura replied, a sweat drop going down her head.

"Because I don't know..."Ryo replied blunty. Sakura sighed.

"I suppose we have no other choice,"she stated.

Ryo turned around and began walking along the side of the mansion to get around back.

"Where are you going?"Sakura asked, sounding like she was half complaining and jogging to catch up.

"Unless you want to get lost in that house, this is the easiest way to get to Kiane's room,"Ryo replied.

A shiver ran down his back recalling the last time he got lost.

After doing the usual routine with the ladder and the balcony Ryo and Sakura, for the first time, appeared in Kiane's room. They took a seat at the table Ryo had eaten at before. It was 2:45 at the time, so Kiane would be getting out of school soon.

"This place sure is big,"Sakura said leaning back in the chair.

"What do you expect he's in the Sumabi family,"Ryo replied, yawning.

"He has six computers in his room too,"Sakura commented again.

"Last time I was here he only had four,"Ryo said with a sweatdrop.

Sakura's grip failed and she fell back, chair and all. Ryo closed his eye's and had a sweatdrop going down his head. _She's such a kluts..._ he thought.

_Then why do you like her?_ another thought came into his head. Ryo's eyes went wide, the moment she fell asleep on him on the bus flashed back into his head, but he quickly shook it off.

"What are you talking about!?"Ryo shouted aloud.

"Huh?"Sakura asked.

_Heh, deny it all you want, but you know it's true._ the thought told Ryo.

"Listen, voice, I don't know who you are, but get out of me,"Ryo said aloud again.

"Eh...Ryo-kun?"Sakura asked, blinking and wide-eyed.

_Trust me, as much as I would love to leave, I'm stuck in here, so get used to it. _the thought replied to him.

"Where did you come from anyways? And why do you talk to me? You were the voice that mentioned the AIs while I was in the hospital, right?"Ryo asked it.

_Yeah, since I've been in you long enough so when you get into thinking I can communicate with you._ the thought replied.

"Well, I don't like you, for the record,"Ryo pouted with a sweatdrop.

"Wow...the monster is losing it..."Kiane said, walking into the room.

"Kiane-chan!"Sakura said running over to hug Kiane.

"Hello!"Kiane said cheerfully,"Whats with Ryo?"

"I don't know I fell back in my chair and then a moment later he was like 'What are you talking about!?',"Sakura replied.

"Why are you two here, anyways?"Kiane asked, setting down his colorful backpack.

"Well, Ryo-kun, Suichi-san, Dylan-san, and I can't play "The World" at our houses, because our parents won't let us. It's been five days since we played so we're hoping to get news about anything we've missed.

"Well I don't know all the details, but isn't pretty,"Kiane said gravely.

"Can we go and check?"Sakura asked.

"Sure, I have some homework to do, so go ahead without me,"Kiane replied, with a thumbs up.

"Okay, let's go Ryu-kun,"Sakura replied turning back to Ryo.

"I'm not deaf I hear her! Now be quiet,"Ryo shouted, looking up towards the roof.

A sweatdrop fell down Sakura and Kiane's head. While Kiane began doing his homework Ryo and Sakura went ahead and started up some computers. Ryo clicked onto "The World" but was stopped by Sakura.

"Don't you ever check the BBS?"Sakura asked.

"Eh, not usually, why?"Ryo asked.

Sakura sighed.

"It's an information source, plus events are usually posted there."

"I thought even the monster would know that,"Kiane commented.

"Shut up, brat,"Ryo responded.

Giving in, Ryo checked the BBS. There were several topics about the theta server being trashed. Ryo clicked onto a few.

"I'm sending an e-mail to Skyld-senpai, he can tell us what's going on,"Sakura replied.

"Okay, meanwhile, I'll go on, maybe we can check it out."Ryo replied. He double clicked "The World"'s icon and logged in.

"Oh yeah, we were here Saterday after the gruntyback matches,"Coinchii commented to himself.

He was standing by the Chaos Gate in Mac Anu. The trashed server was Theta, which is where Coinchii warped to shortly after his comment.

"Due to server stability issues you will be transfered to a temporary Theta server, please wait,"a message said.

After a few seconds golden ring appeared in the temporary theta server and in them, Coinchii. He looked around, the temporary theta server seemed very basic. A flat, stone ground, similar to the original theta's, was the only land, there weren't any cliffs or anything. And there were stone walls at the limit of the walkable area. The basic required NPC's were there, but other then that this temporary server seemed like nothing more then a prison's courtyard.

Coinchii heard the sound of people logging in behind him, he turned around and found Skyld and Momiri.

"Hey, Coinchii, has Miryo gotten here yet?"Skyld asked.

Miryo appeared at that moment.

"Hi Skyld-senpai,"Miryo hummed.

"...sen...pai?"Skyld replied.

"She's using honorables now,"Coinchii replied with a sweatdrop going down his head.

"Okay since you two are here, we can go to the server now,"Momiri said, her voice was serious, but still sounded like similar to a innocent young woman's voice.

"Server?"Coinchii asked.

"Yes, regarding the events that took place in the theta server, we can't talk here though, let's go,"Momiri said.

The four were soon surrounded by golden rings and came to in the original theta server, or what was left of it.

"What happened?"Ryo asked, wide-eyed and in shock.

Various parts of the path were missing, data holes randomly scattered the area, like the dataless harpies he fought before. Various 1's and 0's could be seen floating in the air. The place was completely trashed.

"While your group was gone the AIs attacked, but don't worry it wasn't your fault,"Venus replied walking from behind them.

"Well, Venus and I have business to attend to, you may check over the area, but please be careful we still don't know what'll happen to people who fall into the data holes,"Momiri replied.

Venus and Momiri warped away.

"Which AIs did this?"Coinchii asked.

"It was Pyro, Jade, and Kiiro. Jade turned into a large monster which Pyro cloned, the players didn't stand a chance. Then after the players were removed Pyro created some monsters and Kiiro removed their data. Afterwards they let they monsters loose to destroy this place,"Skyld answered.

"So basically even if we were here it doesn't sound like we would've been able to do anything,"Miryo said sullenly, looking at the damaged ground.

"What's worse then that, is that the data that makes up these AIs...Something in there is blocking us from scanning them. We can't learn anything about them using computers or else the computers will crash."

Coinchii's eyes widened.

----------

"Protection program?"Orion asked sitting against the short wall.

"They're planning to get some data about the AIs and attempt to create a program that'll prevent damage to anyone in real life."

"It's going to fail."

"Huh?"

"I said it's going to fail. Trust me, Code tried the same thing,"Orion replied.

"He tried to make a protection program?"

"No, he tried getting data on the AIs He found out, they are data, but there's something in the data, that will, well, screw your computer up."

----------

"He was right after all..."Coinchii muttered.

"Huh, who was right?"Skyld asked.

"I was!"a voice said coming out of nowhere.

The three looked over at the remnents of a building and saw Orion standing on top of them.

"How did you get in here?"Skyld asked fiercly, drawing his sword.

"Now now, no need to be so hostile, I'm a friend of Coinchii's and I already told him you couldn't scan the AIs' data,"Orion replied, grinning.

Skyld looked over at Coinchii in shock.

"You've been giving information to a hacker?"Skyld asked, the grip on his sword loosened and dropped slightly.

"But, it's Code and he's not try-"

"Enough! I don't care what the circumstance is, you shouldn't associate with hackers! Code is one of the most famous ones so that makes it worse!"

"Hey, stop talking bad about us, not all hackers are bad ya know,"Orion replied to defend himself.

"You're one of the worst! You're the infamous Code!"Skyld shouted, pointing his sword at Orion.

"No, I just work for him, I'm not Code,"Orion replied with a chuckle.

"I don't care!"Skyld shouted angrily charging down the bridge where Orion now stood.

"I don't want to fight you, but if you insist,"Orion replied pulling out his spear.

He quickly brought his spear up blocking Skyld's attack.

"Since this only a game, and I'm sure you're max level, I can't really make myself stronger then you. However, that doesn't mean I'll lose,"Orion shouted, pushing Skyld's sword back.

Orion jumped up and thrust his spear forward, but missed as Skyld jumped to the side. Skyld grabbed the handle of the spear and pulled it away, but Orion had jumped up and the base of his foot met Skyld's face. He pushed himself off and did a flip, landing by the spear which he just lost. Skyld slashed at Orion knocking him onto the ground. The second slash was blocked as Orion rolled over holding his spear in the way of the attack. Orion pushed the sword away and got up, but Skyld was already thrusting his sword forward. Orion managed a last minute dodge and threw his spear into Skyld's cape.

"This fight is over,"Orion said, walking over to Coinchii.

"That's what you think!"Skyld yelled then charged at Orion.

He was pulled back and landed on the ground, staring at the sky.

"What happened..."Skyld muttered,"...his spear!"

The spear had gone through the bottom of Skyld's cape then into the ground locking Skyld into place.

"Anyways, Ryo, I must ask. Why haven't you been on lately?"Orion asked.

"Our parents aren't letting us play because they say we're on too often,"Coinchii answered.

"I see I'll inform Code and we'll see what we can do. Knowing Code he'll probably create various plans and you can choose from those."

Skyld pulled the spear out of the ground and threw it like a javalin at the ground in front of of Orion.

"I'll let you go for now. If you're a good hacker, like you say you are, then I won't mind you. However, if it turns out you're doing anything to harm "The World" then I will make sure you're dealt with,"Skyld said, before warping away.

Orion chuckled.

"Aren't you worried at all?"Coinchii asked.

"I'm not doing anything bad, so what do I have to worry about?"Orion replied.

"I suppose that's true..."Coinchii replied looking at the hole left by Orion's spear where Skyld was stuck at.

"Anyways, pass the message along to Dylan and Suichi. I'll see what I can get Code to do for all four of you,"Orion replied,"I'll start on it now, so this means I'm off, see ya you two."

Orion logged out, leaving Sakura and Ryo in the trash heap of Dun Lorieg. Coinchii felt something hit in the back of the head. He looked back and saw nothing.

"Must be the brat, be right back,"Coinchii said.

Ryo took off his headset and looked over at Kiane.

"I've been trying to get your attention for the last fifteen minutes!"he shouted.

"Sorry for having on a headset,"Ryo replied sarcasticly.

"It's almost dinner soon, so are you guys going to stay over or are you going home?"Kiane asked.

Ryo blinked. It didn't even feel like two hours had passed already.

"Well I guess we have to go then, thanks for letting use the computer, Kiane,"Ryo replied.

Sakura had probably noticed what time it was, because she was talking her headset off now.

"Hey you didn't call me brat,"Kiane said surprised.

A sweatdrop fell down Ryo's head.

"Ryo-kun can be mature when he wants to be,"Sakura replied grabbing onto his shoulders from behind.

"You be quiet! I know you mean it in a perverted way!"Ryo shouted.

"How's what she said perverted?"Kiane asked.

Ryo turned red.

"You're too young,"Ryo said, looking off to the side.

"Fine be that way, monster!"Kiane said, sticking out his tounge.

"You brat!"Ryo said, punching Kiane in the head.

Sakura sighed.

"Oh that's right Christmas is on Monday, I'll stop by with your present, Ryo-kun,"Sakura said as the limo pulled onto her block.

"Present? Is it anything perverted?"Ryo asked.

"No, not this time, it's almost christmas so I'll behave."

The limo pulled into a stop. After a quick glomp for Ryo she happily made her way down the path to her house. The limo started up and pulled out again.

_You know, you should go for it. You two would be a good match._ the voice from before said to Ryo.

"You again?"Ryo replied with a lack of enthusiasm.

_I'm in you, so I can't exactly not be here..._

"Still people will think I'm weird if I'm talking to a voice in my head. And on top of that how do I know you're real, maybe I'm just crazy."

_Think as you want, but since you have the chance, don't you have anything you want to ask me?_

"Eh...you mean like a questions such as 'What's the meaning of life'?"

_No, perhaps where I came from or at least something not stupid?_

"Actually, now that I think about it, where **did** you come from anyways?"

_"The World"...As you should have realized today, there's more to "The World" then what it seems. It's vital you keep playing so whatever this Code guy says, do it._

"Ugh, First I was getting orders from AnakinseZ, then Momiri, then Code, and now I'm getting orders from a damned voice in my head. This is so wrong..."

"Master Ryo, we're at you're house,"Jennings said, as the car stopped.

Ryo blinked.

"Can you do me a favor, Jennings?"Ryo said, while rubbing the back of his head.

"Yes?"

"Forget I was just talking to myself back here?"

"I'll try, Master Ryo,"Jennings said, a sweatdrop falling down his composed face.

* * *

Now, next weekend, normally chapter 17 would be posted, however since it's a christmas special(following the story's frame of time) it's not that important. And since I never got around to finishing it I'll be skipping over to chapter 18. The only thing story wise thats really worth even mentioning is that Ryo's parents allow him back on "The World", but this is also mentioned in chapter 18. So that being said, reviews, constructive critisism, suggestions, questions so on along those lines are always welcome. 


	17. Chapter 18:Code

Here's chapter 18. As I said before if I ever get around to finishing chapter 17 (I might do it as a release for christmas) I'll post it up. This week seemed like it took forever. Anyways as the title of the chapter states, yes Code is revealed. Apologies in advance if it doesn't feel as though there's enough build up. Reading back over it feels as though he gets revealed too quickly, but hey you can express your opinion in a review if anything cough. Anyways, enjoy.**  
**

* * *

Ryo walked back into his room after taking a shower. Since he was now allowed onto "The World" he was planning to get on right away, but before that he had to answer his cellphone which had just started ringing. Ryo checked the caller, it was Orion so he accepted.

"Orion?"Ryo asked, getting water out of his ear with his finger.

"Ryo, yesterday on Christmas your parents said you could play on "The World" again, right?"he asked.

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"I'll explain later, Code's in town, and he wants to meet you and your group in person."

"Okay, so I go-"Ryo started but cut-off,"Wait, Code wants to meet us in person?"

"Yep, that's what I said."

"Why all of a sudden?"

"No clue, it's Code so I didn't bother asking. Anyways, get the others."

"Eh, then what?"

"Meet at the park, I'll pick you guys up,"Orion said, then he hung up.

Ryo ended the call, then called the others to meet him at the park as he headed off.

"Ryo, why are we here?"Suichi asked, arriving shortly after Ryo.

"It's a surprise I'll let you know when everyone gets here."

Kiane ran over, he probably came with his limo.

"So, monster, what was so important about us meeting here? I mean you guys were allowed to play "The World" again,"Kaine commented.

"I'll explain when Sakura and Dylan get here."

"Sakura-chan is already here,"Sakura hummed hugging Ryo from behind.

"Hi, Sakura,"Ryo replied, his eye twitching.

Dylan had arrived shortly after Sakura.

"Now, you all know how we've been working with Code,"Ryo began,"I recieved a call from Orion earlier and Code is supposedly somewhere in town. He wants to meet us so Orion is picking us up."

"Hold on, the illusive and secretive Code that's been giving his orders through Orion? That Code wants to meet us?"Suichi asked, suspicously.

"Yeah, why does Code-sama want to meet us all of a sudden?"Sakura asked.

"Well Orion said it was Code's orders so he didn't bother asking."

"I can't say for certain and I don't even know what Code's personality is like, however, if his personality is like I think it is he probably has something to discuss with us involving "The World" since our parents allowed us on it,"Dylan said, looking as though he was lost in thought.

"Only your parents,"Kiane commented, at the others.

"You be quiet, brat,"Ryo replied.

Kiane stuck his tounge out at Ryo, who in response went to lunge at Kiane but was held back by Suichi.

"Isn't this a happy family,"a voice replied from behind them.

Everyone turned around to see non other then Orion standing by a black town car of some sort.

"Ah, there you are,"Ryo replied, the back of his shirt released from Suichi.

"Well no point in wasting any time here, hop in,"Orion said."Oh, by the way, it's not that we don't trust you, but Code's orders to blindfold you and put these headphones over your ears. I'm not sure if you'll like any of my music, but you're free to pick a CD to keep yourselves occupied."

"Why?"Ryo asked.

"He doesn't want us to know where he is exactly so by doing this we'll only know the destination and not the trip there. The music will probably be to cover up the sound of something, like construction or a river or something along those lines,"Dylan answered.

"Dylan's a sharp one..."Orion said, somewhat nervously.

The car ride really didn't seem that long, perhaps 10 or 20 minutes. Orion led them one by one out of the car and into a building. They were still blindfolded, but the headphones weren't on anymore. It was hard to tell where they were, but the blindfolds were removed shortly after they entered the building.

The building looked old from the inside, but resembled an office of some sort. Dust covered the majority of the room.

"We'll use the elevator to go to the floor Code is on,"Orion replied, putting his hands in his pockets.

Orion led them over to a hallway, the faded red carpet looked torn in a few areas. The floor itself creeked as they walked, and it sounded as though it would give way at any point.

They came up the elevator shortly and Orion summoned the lift.

"Why would Code be working here?"Suichi asked.

"Well, Code's outpost buildings are made to look old and run down. This way if anyone comes in it won't look like anything special, or if some kids wander in here out of curiosity they won't discover anything,"Orion replied, as everyone took turns stepping into the elevator.

" 'Code's outpost buildings?' He owns this place?"Ryo asked.

"Yeah. Umm, look guys, any other question you want to get out of the way before we meet Code?"Orion asked with a sweatdrop.

Everyone turned towards eachother, but no one else seemed to have any questions.

"Very well then,"Orion said.

Like clockwork the door opened after he spoke. We waved his hand out letting the others walk out before him.

"Ah, it's the kids,"Data said walking over.

He wasn't wearing the raincoat, but a normal pair of brown dress pants, black dress shoes, and a white button up dress shirt. He looked like some kind of business man.

"Who's he? Is he Code?" Suichi asked.

"No, that's Data. We met him way back when, but haven't seen him since. I can barely recognize him without the heavy raincoat,"Ryo said.

"Well, we keep busy since we train under Code so we don't have the biggest social life,"Data replied.

"Ah, could you take care of them while I go inform Code they're here?"Orion asked Data.

"Sure,"Data replied with a nod.

"Anyways, Data-san, you 'train' under Code-sama?"Sakura asked.

"Mmhmm, there are three phases before you can become Code's apprentice, but out of the three of us you know about none of us are an apprentice yet."

"What are the three phases? If you don't mind telling us,"Suichi asked.

"I'm not sure if I can tell you guys, sorry."

"Aww, you sure?"

"I can guess,"Dylan commented.

"Oh?"Data responded.

"There are three steps before you become an apprentice. Ignoring the 'C' you have three letters: 'O', 'D', and 'E', which are also used as code-names. 'O' for Orion, 'D' for Data, and 'E' for Eclipse. This much I know should be right, correct?"

"Yes, continue, please,"Data notioned.

Dylan nodded. "We've seen Orion in game and he keeps tabs on us. Orion is also a famous mythical hunter. Data was the source of information for us and if I recall he takes in and sends information per Code's order. Last is Eclipse. I did some thinking as to this code-name. I believe it's refering to how an eclipse will hide either the sun or moon, depending on the type of eclipse."

"Interesting, I see you've put some thought into it, but you still haven't said what you believe the three phases are."

"Hmm, Orion, I believe is your ability at field work. How willing you are to go into action and how well you can do it. I believe Data is how well you handle information. Organizing information, gathering information, storing information, and so on fall under this phase. The last phase I would think refers to stealth. Perhaps covering your tracks, leaving no clues, possibly planting false leads. Am I right?"Dylan asked, finishing up.

"Well deduced, Dylan,"a voice replied out of nowhere.

Everyone attentioned turned to a nearby corner where Orion walked out.

"Is it Code?"Ryo asked.

He walked around the corner. It was shocking, there were a few differences, such as the pale skin tone, spiky black hair, and the clothes, but he could've almost passed as Ryo's twin. Unlike Ryo's black, baggy shirt, blue jeans, and unzipped hoody, Code wore black jeans, a white undershirt, and a black unbuttoned shirt with two red dragons on each side. By the looks of it, he seemed to go barefoot often.

"I...can't believe it,"Kiane said, wide-eyed.

"He almost...looks like..."Suichi continued.

"Me..."Ryo added.

"I told you not to be shocked by his appearance,"Orion said, shrugging it off.

"Really though, Code-sama, could almost pass as Ryo-kun's twin,"Sakura said.

"Anyways, let's go to place where we can sit,"Code notioned, tilting his head to a door.

"Ah, right, by the way, kids, you can close your mouths,"Orion joked.

"Really, they were hanging open from awe,"Data added, walking in behind Code.

The room resembled a typical living room, well lit, brown couches, a coffee table in the middle, television on the opposing side of the couches, white carpet, white walls, and other basics. Everyone took a seat on one of the two couches, except Orion who took the recliner, and Code who was standing between them and the television.

"Oh, by the way, you probably need you need to know our names,"Suichi began.

"No. I'm fine, Suichi,"Code replied.

"You already know who is who?"Kiane asked.

"Easily. Ryo Kuinichi's character, Coinchii, matches his appearance. Dylan Demion is the smart, problem solving one, and was standing roughly two feet from the rest of group, like Demon does. Sakura Ominari is the only female so that's a no-brainer. Also if you need more solid proof, Ryo is Coinchii and Miryo tends to cling to Coinchii, as Sakura does to Ryo. Her name means 'my Ryo' as well. Suichi Mohi tends to take the lead in the group, and was standing in front, plus he leans a bit on his right leg, like his character Mohi tends to do. Lastly, Kain and Coinchii act like children, however Coinchii is already Ryo, so Kain would have to be Kiane Sumabi. And he's the only person who hasn't been matched up with a character yet,"Code said finishing up.

"So...basically Code-sama is an observant stalker,"Sakura replied.

"Well, I am interested in Ryo, so I need to know all about him. And since he doesn't know why the AI's are following him, it means I'll have to learn more about Ryo then Ryo knows about himself."

"Eh, I feel violated,"Ryo muttered.

"Those observations..."Dylan breathed.

"You say something, Dylan?"Ryo replied.

"Those observations, deductions, and comparisons...he said them with such certainty. Even though they weren't much higher than my level, the certainty alone proves he must be at higher level than me,"Dylan said.

"I suppose that's a compliment?"Code asked.

"So I guess Code **is** like Sherlock Holmes, Orion,"Ryo said, turning to Orion.

"Told ya'. Anyways, enough playing around, I'm sure you five are curious as to why you're here,"Orion replied.

"Thank you, Orion,"Code began."First off, it seems my plan succeeded, you four are playing "The World" again. Things will be a lot more dangerous from here on out. Except for Ryo, the rest of you aren't direly needed. You can continue to help, however, if you choose do so be aware you could be injured, possibly sent into a coma, if this is like the last one, or possibly die. No one will blame you if you back out now."

"What do you mean? 'except for Ryo,'?"Ryo pouted.

"I mean, the AIs are after you, so you don't have a choice, to put it bluntly,"Code replied.

"Ryo's our friend, so I don't think any of us will leave him,"Suichi replied.

Sakura and Kiane nodded.

"Eh, Dylan, you didn't agree,"Ryo said, wide-eyed.

"I don't plan on leaving, don't worry,"Dylan said, his gaze set upon Code.

"You all sound sure, but are you positive?"Code asked.

"Yeah,"Suichi replied.

"Very well then. We have a few things to discuss today, if any of you to contact your parents do so now."

Code paused, but no one seemed to have the need to contact there parents.

"Since you guys have been gone a lot has been happening. The AIs have begun attacking servers, last time you logged on Theta server was down, and a temp server was up. Now even the temp server was destroyed, it isn't looking good for "The World". This means we can't play around anymore, but because Orion was spotted by Skyld. Skyld learned we were working along with Coinchii and company, because of this the system's alliance with Coinchii is unstable, anything could cause them to turn against him. However we can't just sit back either, since the AIs are expanding from random fields to towns and event locations it means they've grown smarter, more powerful, or possibly both. This can only mean their true goal is in reach...or will be soon."

"Why do you think that?"Kiane asked.

"The rate of activity is growing, as it stands now there are at least two or three attacks a day and CC Corp can't figure out how to block off the AIs and they're unwilling to accept a notorious hacker's help. They've made some attempts but if the AIs really wanted to it wouldn't be hard to get through. We know there are at least four AIs. Alone they're strong as it stands, but in a group their strength multiplies as they combine their powers. If we can destroy number four however then they won't be able to create data absorbing monsters."

"Wait, by four do you mean, Kiiro? The yellow colored one?"Ryo asked.

"You've named them?"

"Well no, they kind of already came with names, Aqua, Pyro, Jade, and Kiiro."

"Interesting...The names represent their color scheme?"

"Yeah."

"Hmm...Well...moving on, by taking out Kiiro we'll remove the biggest threat, but the only problem is Kiiro has yet to be seen traveling alone. So I'm thinking the best strategy would be to seperate the AIs and seal them off. We may be able to pull this off, but we'd need enough strength so that we can afford to divide it amongst the AIs. I've noticed Coinchii has a quite a decent sized amount of member addresses."

"Oh, also there's October, I'm sure they'll help,"Ryo mentioned.

"I don't think so, Data, go fetch one of the labtops, please,"Code replied.

"Yes sir, be right back,"Data replied, before walking out the room.

"Why don't you think so?"Ryo asked.

"You'll see once I show you your e-mails."

"You hack into my e-mails!?"Ryo replied annoyed.

"Anyways, until Data gets back, I'll resume getting to the point,"Code said.

"Don't ignore me!"Ryo replied.

"Just calm down, Ryo, it's no big deal,"Suichi replied nervously with a sweatdrop.

"Fine..."

"It shouldn't be too hard to find the AIs with how active they've been. Fighting them will be troublesome, but not the biggest worry we have. The boss behind them has yet to show itself so there's no telling what will happen after we take care of the minions...**if** we can take care of the minions in the first place,"Code said.

"Why do you have to say it so pessimisticly?"Suichi groaned.

"I'm merely stating the truth. As it stand now the odds of winning are 43 at best."

"What's with the percents?"Kiane asked.

"I compute things out in my mind, figure the odds, then come up with a percent. I find it useful. Are you done asking me questions?"Code replied, although it didn't show he seemed as though he was becoming annoyed.

"That was it,"Kiane replied, sliding down in his seat.

"Code, I found it,"Data replied, walking in.

"Okay, hook it up,"Code ordered.

Data began to do so.

"Now as I said the biggest problem is the boss, we know nothing about it so for now let's just start with the minions. I've done some thinking into the boss, but there are just too many possibilities as it stands now so I can't get anywhere."

"It's ready,"Data said, sitting the labtop on the coffee table.

Code plopped himself down indian style, sitting on the floor. He logged in under Ryo's account

"How many times has he done that?"Ryo muttered to himself.

"Here,"Code said, turning around the Labtop.

"Wow, I have five e-mails from AnakinseZ, two from Skyld an-Hey!"Ryo replied, as Code began to click into messages.

"The first two from AnakinseZ, as you can see, are more or less asking where you are,"Code said, clicking into the e-mails."The third one is explaining how the unreliability is becoming an issue. The fourth one states that if you can't log in soon your position in the Elite Rogue Squadron is getting terminated. The last one more or less says you were kicked out, lost your powers, and he apologizes about replacing you."

"Hey!"Ryo shouted.

"Ryo-kun gets a lot of e-mails,"Sakura said, blinking.

"Skyld's e-mails are:The first one asking where you are, and the second one involves him saying about how for safety reasons information won't be relayed to you, but that's no problem. I can hack CC Corp easily."

"What about the others?"Ryo asked.

"Ah, the rest are pretty much pointless, some from your online friends, and some hate mail from Hinoja."

"Who was Hinoja again?" Ryo asked.

Suichi sighed."He was the guy you beat in the first grunty match."

"Oh, I remember now."

"You're missing the point, Ryo,"Code said.

"Yeah, this means we don't have the system on our side anymore,"Suichi said.

"It's not hopeless,"Sakura replied suddenly.

Everyone turned towards her and she blushed some.

"Well, when Skyld was walking away from the Orion fight, remember what he said?"

"Oh yeah, he said he would watch over Orion and if he was a 'hacker of good' then he would consider working together,"Ryo finished.

"That means if we can get Orion to do some good deeds we could get back on their good side,"Code and Dylan said in unison.

"It also means we'll have more strength to fight the AIs,"Suichi said.

"So I guess I have to do some community service. What's in mind?"Orion asked.

"Ryo, you've been the closest to the system, what do you think it would take?"Code asked.

Ryo put his hand on his chin and began to think.

"Nows not the time to come up with anything stupid, Ryo,"Suichi said.

"That's one of the things that makes Ryo so cute, though"Sakura hummed, with grin.

Kiane chuckled.

"Just wait till you grow up, Kiane, you'll understand then,"Sakura said, patting him on the head.

"I don't think I want to understand,"Kiane mumbled.

_Hey, voice, any ideas?_ Ryo asked the voice in his head.

_I didn't even notice I was able to communicate now._

Everything around Ryo had been tuned out.

_If someone worked under them perhaps that would solve the problem. _the voice suggested.

_Are you sure Code would allow Orion to work under them though?_ Ryo asked.

_Nothing major, but like whenever AIs attack, they can have him fend them off while the others get away._

_Are you sure? I mean they might not trust Orion enough to let him work for them. _Ryo replied.

"It's the only thing I can think of at the moment," came out of Ryo's mouth.

Everything slowly returned.

"What is it?"Code asked.

_What was that? I didn't say that...Did...that voice...control me? _ Ryo thought to himself.

"Ryo?"Suichi asked.

"Oh, perhaps if Orion helped to defend players against AIs as like a hired mercenary, then they would trust him more, and in exchange trust Code more,"Ryo said, still worried about the thought of the voice controlling him.

"I'm not fond of the idea of letting Orion work for anyone else, but I trust him, and we're desperate. So Orion, instead of following Coinchii and the other players, you're job will be to assist against the AIs in order to help regular players get away safely. Once things seem stable enough we'll give them some lower grunt workers to satsify them and you'll return by my side."

"Yes sir,"Orion replied.

"That's all for today, there's just one thing I have left to offer,"Code replied, logging out of Ryo's account.

"Is it an offer to stop hacking me?"Ryo asked, with a sweatdrop.

"No. Since all of you are still teenagers your parents are major obsticles, and you can't always work around them."

"You're the same age as me..."Ryo muttered, but was ignored by Code.

"If you wish to, I can set you up in a facility of mine. You can live there, play "The World". I'll make sure you keep up with school. I'll have your parents thinking it's a special, private school for gifted children, free of charge. And leave enough information for them so they more than likely won't feel any need to stop you. This way you'll be able to focus more on "The World". This is optional so don't decide yet, think it over. That's all for today. Sorry for the procedures, but you'll have to be made blind and deaf until you get dropped off at the park again, no offense."

"I'll take them out then,"Orion said, leading them out of the room.

The procedures from before were reversed, as they reached the bottom floor they were blindfolded and given CD players with headphones, then lead to the car.

_Hey voice!_ Ryo thought harshly.

_What is it? _The voice replied casually.

_What did you do earlier?_

_What are you talking about, Ryo?_

_Earlier, something you said in my head ended up coming out of my mouth! _Ryo shouted in his head.

_I didn't notice. Perhaps since I'm in your thoughts you voiced it out of some habit?_

_You better not be up to something..._

_I'm a voice in your head, I don't even have the ability to think without you hearing it, I can't be up to anything._

Ryo tuned into the music in order to block off the voice.

"I'll have to be more careful with that voice,"Ryo muttered under his breath.

* * *

At this rate will catch up with my work progress, since I recently finished chapter 21. And because of my schedule I'll be lucky to be getting a chapter out every two weeks. Double-edged sword, I guess. Anyways, even if it's a public well written out apology, something thrown together not meant to actually be in the story, or whatever, I'll make sure something is added.(I don't plan on abandoning my stories). And as the final comments end, thus comes me motto. Reviews, suggestion, critizism, so on welcome. 


	18. Chapter 19:Welcome back, Coinchii

Another weekend another chapter. Not much to say today, enjoy.

* * *

"So that's it, I'm glad you didn't quit,"Gyuni said, sighing.

Coinchii was waiting for the others to log in. He had already checked out the effects of his absence and as Code had said, there was indeed no operational Theta server. In an attempt to protect the city, barriers were set up in all the towns. It was made up of green grid which looked to be made up of light. According to the e-mails sent out CC Corp it prevented access of any entry or exit without the aid of the Chaos Gate. The Chaos Gate had also been revamped and without a character ID, which existed in every player's character, the Chaos Gate wouldn't respond. The normally water-like filling of the Chaos Gate's ring was replaced with it's own grid as well.

"So aside from the fact all hell broke loose, has anything else interesting happened?"Coinchii asked.

He was sitting down next to an alley next to Gyuni in Carmina Gadelica.

"Everyone's started to pass you again in levels,"Gyuni replied cheerfully, sticking her tounge out.

"Hiiiiiiiii my little snow bunny,"a voice called out.

"I told you to stop calling me that!"Gyuni shouted.

"Ah, it's you, Coinchii,"Cuoka said, surprised.

"Oh, hey Cuoka,"Coinchii replied.

"I thought you quit,"he replied bluntly, scratching his cheek.

"No...just grounded,"Coinchii replied with a sweatdrop.

"Ah, Mohi logged on!"Gyuni exclaimed.

"Ack, you guys have such low levels,"Cuoka said in shock, checking their information.

"What do you expect we haven't been able to play,"Coinchii fought back to defend himself.

"In that case, I guess there's no choice,"Cuoka replied, folding his arms.

Everything turned dark and a spotlight appeared on Cuoka.  
"I, the great Cuoka, will take time out of my schedule to help you!"he shouted, arms folded, looking up, and sparkles surrounding him.  
The scenery returned and the spotlight vanished.

"How the hell did you do that?"Coinchii asked, one eye brow up.

"Not a clue,"Cuoka replied, his hand on his chin.

"Ugh, the hell am I walking into?"Mohi replied, walking over.

"Umm, Cuoka is going to help us get some levels, since we were absent,"Coinchii replied.

There was a silence.

"I'll help, I can show off some equipment I've found. I have a staff with Ola Repth now, it should do for your levels,"Gyuni replied.

"Ola Repth?"Coinchii asked.

"It's heals 400 HP to the target and any nearby allies,"Mohi answered.

"Coinchii-kun!"Miryo replied running over.

"Ah, it's the fallen angel,"Cuoka replied, being the closet pervert he is.

"You can have her,"Coinchii commented.

Miryo jumped on Coinchii, nuzzling him.

"He get's the fallen angel? Hmm...There's still the snow bunny,"Cuoka replied, sliding over to Gyuni.

"Try it and I'll kill you..."Gyuni responded.

"So cold,"Cuoka sighed.

"Hello everyone,"Demon replied, finally joining the group.

"This is perfect, Gyuni can take two people and Cuoka can take the other two,"Coinchii said, now that everyone was present.

Miryo looked up at him, Demon looking over.

"They promised to help us level since we weren't able to play,"Coinchii replied.

"You're getting Cuoka,"Demon suddenly replied.

Mohi joined Demon next to Gyuni.

"Well, I guess this settles the parties,"Gyuni replied blinking.

Invitations were sent and the group began towards the Chaos Gate.

"I guess we'll part ways for now, but I'll be thinking about you my snow bunny,"Cuoka replied.

Gyuni sighed.

"Where should we go?"Miryo asked.

"Hmm, let's just make something up,"Cuoka replied, looking the word bank.

"Lambda...Shining...Future's...New Hope,"Cuoka read out.

"Right, we'll go to...Lambda, Lost Crying Dark Lake,"Gyuni replied.

The two respective parties vanished in their golden rings. Cuoka, Miryo, and Coinchii appeared in their area. The entire field looked as though it was made of magma and everything seemed to be constantly bending from the heat.

"This is a shining new hope?"Coinchii replied sarcasticly.

A large monster happened to be near by and initiated a fight. It looked like a bundle of grapes fused together with eyes and bat wings.

"We'll have to be careful, Stares can hurt,"Cuoka replied, putting up his hands.

He had some black gauntlets on which had claws on the end. Coinchii pulled out his sword and Miryo, her staff.

"Miryo, just stick back and try to heal us,"Cuoka said running up and punching at the Stare twice.

"Why?"Miryo complained.

All of a sudden three large fireballs shot down at Cuoka, and he ended up dieing.

"Oh..."Miryo said, her question answered.  
Coinchii used a ressurect on Cuoka and the actual fight began. Coinchii slashed at the Stare as Cuoka clawed at it.

"It isn't even flinching,"Coinchii grunted, landing another blow.

Fireballs appeared above Coinchii and came down, as the explosions faded he found himself low on hp and laying on the ground. Miryo's repth appeared shortly afterwards.  
Cuoka landed on some punches before getting knocked away by the Stare.  
"Dammit, Cuoka! Why'd you take us here!?"Coinchii shouted, ducking under a tackle from the Stare.  
"So you can level,"Cuoka replied, getting back up and punching rapidly at the monster.  
Three fireballs appeared, targeting Cuoka. Coinchii used a Healing Potion to recover his hp after the first fireball hit him, the next two did a lot of damage but didn't manage to kill him, Miryo healed Cuoka afterwards. Coinchii shouted as he jumped at the monsters, slicing at it horizontally. Cuoka got in a few more punches and the monster was finally low on hp.

"Keep it up,"Cuoka grunted, deflecting an attempted strike by the Stare.

The Stare spun in a circle knocking back both Coinchii and Cuoka. Coinchii hit the ground and rolled a few times, but picked himself up, and charged towards the Stare. He brought his sword up and put all of his strength into the next attack. The Stare turned gray, falling to the ground, before blowing away like dust.

Coinchii and Miryo leveled.

"See, wasn't it worth it?"Cuoka replied, sitting down.  
"No it wasn't, we're going to a new map,"Coinchii replied, with a drooping head."Right Miryo?"

"Actually, I have no trouble with this map, I think its fine,"Miryo replied.

"Ah, see even the fallen angel agrees, majority wins,"Cuoka replied, nodding.

A sweatdrop was falling down Miryo's head."Then again, it might be better to try a new map..."  
Coinchii's head perked up and Cuoka's drooped down now.

"I completely agree with you, majority wins,"Coinchii replied, grinning.

"Lambda Mercy Bloody Electric Chair,"Coinchii read aloud.

He was used the option to have the Chaos Gate create a random set of keywords.

"That sounds worse than Shining Future's New Hope,"Cuoka grumbled.

"It's level is lower than the other one,"Miryo commented.

"Let's try it,"Coinchii said."Lambda, Mercy Bloody Electric Chair!"  
They disappeared in golden rings and appeared in some sort of stone labyrinth.

"This is a field?"Coinchii asked.

"The first time I've seen one like this,"Cuoka answered.

The began to walk forward. Everything seemed normal, they took a left turn, a right turn, another right turn, then began walking down a large passage.

"Is this an event by some chance?"Miryo asked.

"I haven't heard of any events lately,"Cuoka answered.

"I could always ask Zero,"Coinchii responded.

"Zero?"Cuoka asked.

"Yeah, he knows all about events, even unannounced events."

"Try sending him a message,"Miryo said, grabbing his arm.

Coinchii froze for a second as the message was being created. After a short period of time the message was sent off and Coinchii returned to normal.

"Alright I sent the message,"Coinchii stated.

"We should call my snow bunny and the others,"Cuoka said, with his fist in his palm.

"You're a very creepy man..."Coinchii replied, with a sweatdrop going down his head.

Cuuka pouted for a second, then turned his back to Coinchii and sent the message. Coinchii recieved his reply from Zero at the same time.

"Zero says that there hasn't been anything reporting an event, and that he's coming to check it out,"Coinchii said.

"My snowbunny and the other two are coming as well,"Cuoka stated.

Just as they had settled things, they saw a wierd flower down the passage way. They began to walk over to it.

"It looks like a rose,"Miryo commented.

The flower turned to the three then ran away. The three looked at eachother then began to run after the flower. It lead them through various twists and turns but finally ran into the dead-end of a semi-circle. Miryo walked over to it and bent down.

"What do you think it is?"she asked.

Just then the the pathway into the semicircle vanished and it became a full circle, trapping them.

"The hell is this?"Coinchii asked, pushing on the wall where the pathway used to be.

Cuoka punched the wall a few times, but it proved to be pointless. There were some voices on the outter side of the circle.

"What's that?"Miryo asked.  
Coinchii 'shhh'ed her, and they listened.

"There's another player in here, one that wasn't planned for,"they heard one voice say.

"Then kill him, Jade. Once we capture Coinchii and his friends we're out of here anyways, and Kiiro will turn the map back to normal. The plan doesn't allow for any awareness we can avoid,"a cold, emotionless voice said, probably Aqua.  
"What about the other two, the wavemaster and fighter?"Jade replied.  
"Us?"Miryo and Cuoka asked at the same time.  
"She never specified, but we should probably take them in anyways,"someone else said.

"Oh. The others are in the trap,"someone said excitedly, probably Pyro.

Shortly afterwards the circular trap changed and turned into some oval shape, Mohi, Demon, and Gyuni appeared on the other side of the changing walls. The two groups ran to meet eachother in the middle.

"What's going on in here, Coinchii?"Mohi asked.

"The AIs have trapped us,"Coinchii answered, before shushing the others.

"Alright, mission accomplished. Let's rough them up a bit before taking them anywhere so they can't fight back,"Kiiro replied.

There was a squeel and the six looked over at the two flowers which had lured their respective groups. They began mutating and growing larger, until they formed some wierd floral scorpian monsters.

"I've never seen this monster before,"Gyuni replied, tripping over her feet in shock.

"Probably a monster based off of whatever Jade is at the moment,"Coinchii answered, pulling out his sword.

A vine shot out of the pincer of one of the monsters, but Demon dived out of the way. It kept going and hit Cuoka who wasn't prepared yet. He let a grunt as he rolled on the ground before hitting the wall. He slowly forced himself up, breathing heavily.

"That...hurts..."he managed to get out.

"But isn't this just a game? Why did it hurt you?"Gyuni asked, holding her staff in front of her to substitute for a shield.

"Not when the AIs are attacking you, if we were to try we probably can't log out right now,"Coinchii answered, a serious expression on his face.

Mohi pulled out his orb."Ani Kruz!" he shouted. The large balls of darkness appeared and stuck themselves onto one of the scorpions. The other scorpion had already shot vines from it's pincers and made collision with Mohi. He skid back, dropping his staff, and holding his stomach. He let out a grunt and fell onto his knees. His last attack had begun to take effect still and the large orbs grew until it covered the scorpion completely, when the darkness faded the scorpion was laying on the ground, but didn't appear to be dead.

Demon slashed at the pincers of the other scorpion, but his attacks had little effect. The monster was surrounded by fireballs after someone had used a scroll. The fireballs collided with the scorpion and it was soon on fire.  
"It looks like it worked,"Coinchii replied, pausing his from his fight with the weaker scorpion.

It was a mistake though. The pincer came down knocking Coinchii onto the ground, and after a sting with its stinger and Coinchii found everything going blurry. There was a yellow light around him for a second, but he blacked out.

His stomach felt like crap, as though he would throw up. He let out a groan and opened his eyes. He was now in a some large room, quite extravagant. He sat up and checked his body, he still had on his open black shirt, black shoes, and blue pants, so he was still in "The World". Coinchii got off the tan colored king size bed and walked over to the door across the pure white carpet. He reached down to the handle but the door opened before he could do anything.

Pyro jumped on him and gave him a hug, but was quickly pushed off by Coinchii.

"You don't like me?"Pyro asked, trying to look innocent.

"Of course not! Where is this?"Coinchii asked.

Pyro stood up and adjusted her shirt and robe. Her face looked a little disappointed."Kiiro made this by modifying the original map. People like large extravagant places, right?"

Coinchii was aggravated. He was trapped, Pyro was trying to act like his friend, and he had no clue where he was, and needless to say he didn't feel like messing around.

"What am I doing here?"Coinchii asked, glaring at her from the side of his eyes.

"Oh dear, did Kiiro mess with your eyes? They were such a pretty blue,"Pyro said pouting.

"My eyes?"Coinchii asked.

"Yes, they're gray with red streaks now. I'll have to make her fix it."

_I shouldn't be worrying about what my eyes look like. I have to get out of here, now..._ Coinchii thought to himself.

"Where is the exit?"Coinchii asked.

"Sorry love, but you can't leave. Our boss has some business with you,"Pyro said walking over to Coinchii."And afterwards you're all mine,"she said more slyly, poking his exposed chest.

"What does she want with me? Why have you guys been chasing after me? What's so special about me!?"Coinchii yelled out of anger.

"Calm down,"she replied seductivily, putting her arms on his shoulders."Honestly I don't know myself, but the boss created us, so we have to obey. If you think we're trouble, she's capable of taking all four of us out whenever she wants."

_So it's a female...could it be? _the voice in Coinchii's head said suddenly.  
"What kind of powers does she have?"Coinchii asked.

"Loads of power, and what's more is she isn't fully recovered."

"Recovered?"

"Enough of that, my dear,"Pyro said, leaning slightly forward.

"Get off of me,"Coinchii replied with a deathly serious tone.

Pyro sighed and complied with the request.

"You sure don't know how to get in the mood,"Pyro complained, before walking out.

_What the hell is she thinking? _Coinchii thought to himself.

_Ryo, you have to leave. NOW!_ the voice shouted to him.

_What's wrong?  
If this boss is stronger than the four AIs put together she'll tear through you like paper, it isn't safe. _the voice told him.

_I know that! But I don't have any idea where we are, if you know then by all means tell me! _Coinchii argued back.

"Really, that Pyro is such a pain,"Kiiro said walking in.

"What now?"Coinchii asked aggitated.

"Pyro was too busy flirting she forgot why she was sent here anyways,"Kiiro explained.

Coinchii closed his eyes to relax.

"And to think she accused ME of messing with a player's data. What a waste of my abilities,"she continued,

Coinchii opened his eyes, to find Kiiro staring at him.  
"It is true though, your eyes have become gray,"Kiiro replied.

Coinchii finally got fed up and grabbed for his sword, but it was missing.

Kiiro began to laugh."You should know we're pretty careful when it comes to executing plans, you have no items, scrolls, or equipment."

"What are you supposed to do?"Coinchii asked.

"Come with me, I'm to take you to the main room,"Kiiro said, stretching and leading the way.

Coinchii followed her out into the maroon and white colored hall. The place itself looked like an old colonial mansion. Random pointless nicknacks, pots, and so on decorated the place in a overall cliche'd manner. They walked down some stairs and turned around a corner, coming into what looked like the entrance.

"Coinchii!"Mohi shouted, running over.

"Where is everyone else?"Coinchii asked.

"Not sure, as far as I know we're the only two here."

"How long have we been here?"

"After you disappeared I was taken down shortly afterwards. It's been awhile since then, at least an hour, I don't know what happened to everyone else."

"Kiiro, have you done as you were told with the others?"Aqua asked, appearing out of door.

"Yeah, go get the boss, I'm going to rest,"Kiiro replied.

Aqua turned to Mohi and Coinchii, then vanished back into the door behind her.

"So this is it..."Mohi said, lowly.

"The boss behind these AIs. We'll finally see her,"Coinchii finished.  
The main doors to the mansion flew open, Coinchii and Mohi quickly turned around.

"Ryo, Suichi?"Orion yelled appearing.

Zero walked in behind Orion.

"Orion?"they replied in unison.

"You guys need to get out of here now."

"But we're finally going to meet the boss of the AIs, we can't pass up this opportunity,"Mohi replied.

"If I were you two, I'd listen to this guy,"Zero added.

"You can't get to this place by normal means, that's why no one has discovered it. And why it's being used as their base. This information is enough to keep Code busy for awhile. Don't risk your lives anymore then you have to,"Orion said, an unusual tension surrounding his presence.

Coinchii looked over to Mohi.

"Well?"Coinchii asked.

Mohi took two steps towards Zero and Orion, before turning around.

"I think this is the best choice. They're right. It's like a choice, would you go in blindly not knowing anything or would you prefer to go in with a plan?"Mohi answered.

Coinchii and Mohi began ran out the mansion with Orion and Zero. Outside the mansion it was completely different. It was similar to a town, but the town was trashed. It looked like a slum. Data was randomly missing, odd signs were over various walls. They kept running through the town following Orion until they came out onto a main street.

"What is this town?"Coinchii asked.

"Not sure, but it's a place you can only access through a backdoor, by directly logging into this place,"Orion answered, looking around past all the corrupted looking player models.

"Our escape didn't go so well,"Zero stated, pulling out his katars.

A large, snake-shaped dragon flew out of an alley. It was at least 30 feet long and four feet wide. Green and blue scales covered the body. Aside from the slick looking head and it's flaming tail it had no other traits aside from it's small hind legs.

"Is it Jade?"Mohi asked, backing up.

"You two don't have any weapons do you?"Orion asked, pulling out his spear.

"Don't bother, their items were stripped, you get them out of here,"Zero replied, licking his katar.

"You can't get out with my help,"Orion replied.

The dragon charged forward attempting to hit Coinchii, but he was knocked out of the way by Orion's spear. A ditch-like scar was left in the ground from the impact of the dragon moving across the ground.

"Fine. Hold her off long enough for me get these two out of here and then come, I'll be waiting,"Orion replied, waving Mohi and Coinchii to run.

"Time for some fun,"Zero said, with a giggle.

He jumped onto the back of the dragon as it circled around, getting ready to attack it again and thrust his katars into its back. It's squeel was heard as the three ran away.

They followed the main street until they came to an old gate.

"Gate of darkness, trash of "The World", escape this realm,"Orion said, in a chant like fashion.

A deep voice suddenly sounded out of nowhere asking for a password.

"One, three, four, two, horizontal 36, and vertical 48,"Orion answered.

He pointed his spear at the gate and they began to glow in unison. Orion took his hands off the spear and it continued to float with the purple aura. A beam of light shot into the gate an image soon began to reveal itself.

"You two, go now,"Orion said.

"What about the others? Miryo, Cuoka, Demon, and Gyuni?"Coinchii asked.

"We're still looking for them, but we're pretty sure they aren't in the mansion."

"And how did you find us anyways?"

"Zero saw everything, I caught him as I was about to enter the map. Code had detected some data anomalies there. Now stop asking questions and go before the gate closes."

Coinchii looked back at the gate, the image had fully formed. It was Mac Anu. Mohi and Coinchii ran through. Suddenly everything seemed well-lighted. They turned around expecting to see Orion and that wierd place, but saw nothing more than the Chaos Gate.

"Ryo?"Mohi said after a silence.

"Yeah?"Coinchii replied, ignoring the fact Mohi used his real name.  
"The AIs...They're a lot stronger now,"Mohi replied.

"Yeah...before we were grounded, we were stronger than them so we didn't worry much...In the time we've been gone, they've gotten stronger,"Coinchii replied, unusually serious.

"Remember the offer Code gave us?"Mohi said.

"Which offer?"Coinchii replied.

"Where we'd be sent to a place, where we can focus on "The World", without worry of parents."

"You're considering it?"

"I'll be honest...from the start of all this, I never planned on getting too deep into it. Even lately I've been trying to play minimum role. Even though I don't show it, I have no interest in all of this, but Ryo..."Mohi stopped.

Coinchii looked over to him.

"If you want out...I can't blame you,"Coinchii responded.

"It's not that I want out, but we need to get stronger...No...Ryo you need to get stronger, not just in "The World", but you'll need to learn to fight in real life. It's not my place to choose, I know, but I think it would be best if you took up his offer. We lucked out today, but if losing means our lives..."

"I hope the others are okay,"Coinchii replied.

"Orion said he was looking for them, we shouldn't worry about it. Today is Wednesday, we have four days until school starts, I think by Sunday we should make our final decision. Either work towards this goal, or leave it as a secondary goal. We can't do both, we're just kids after all."

"I can hear crickets in the real world, it must be pretty late...we should log off for now..."Coinchii replied, sullenly.

There was a silence so Coinchii just logged off.

Ryo took off his headset and looked at his clock, it was past 10:00. He picked up his cellphone from next to the Skyld plushie which had been gathering dust as of late. He went through his address book and called Sakura. The ringtone kept going.

_Come on...pick it up_ Ryo thought to himself.

The ringtone ended and no one picked up. Ryo didn't bother leaving a message and tried Dylan. The results were the same. He put the cellphone back on the desk. Sakura's house wasn't too far away, Ryo could probably check in and get back without being noticed. He walked over to his window, opened it, and looked outside. There wasn't anything for him to climb down on, and it was too high to jump. He wasn't about to risk sneaking through the house either.

_Ryo, get a hold of yourself. _the voice suddenly said.

"I can't help but worry, I don't know where any of my friends besides Suichi, unlike you I can't remain calm."

_And worrying isn't going to accomplish anything. If you get worked up you won't be able to think straight._

"What do you want me to do?"Ryo asked back harshly, the voice seemed have been picking fights with him all day.

_Like I said calm down, you've had a busy day, you know at least Suichi is okay. I suggest you take a break, rest now. Tomorrow you can go check it out, check in with Code, and everything else._

Ryo was silent.

_LISTEN!_ the voice shouted.

And at the same moment Ryo felt something smack him. He blinked a few times and looked. the thing that smacked him was his own hand. Ryo grabbed it with his other hand and stared at it.

_Did...did you just that?_ Ryo asked.

_I was hoping it wouldn't come to this...The longer I'm in you the more freedom I get. If you're in a lifeless state, I CAN control you to a degree. Now sleep_ it replied.

Ryo sighed, and removed his outer clothes, climbing under his blanket.

"Why..."

_What?_

"Why? Why wasn't I aware of your ability to control me..."Ryo asked it, in a state of shock.

_Because I'm me...you're you. I can feel my freedom increasing, but you're already at your peak. That's why..._

Ryo's eyes began to close. He strained to keep them open, but exhaustion got the better of him. He fell out...

* * *

I'll be completely honest, in the next few chapters "The World" won't have as big as a role, it'll mostly be taking place in the real world, but I believe it still stays interesting so there shouldn't be much trouble. Reviews and so on always welcome.

"Feelings reveal themselves the most in a tragedy."


	19. Chapter 20:Vengeance

Tired as hell today, but in order to keep up with the new chapter per week, here it is. And since it's been 19 chapters posted since figure I might as well claim again that I don't own .hack, nor do I own anything within .hack, except this story, characters, and plot, you get the idea.

* * *

Ryo's eyes suddenly opened and he sat up. 

_What happened? _he thought to himself.

He paused, and suddenly went wide-eyed remembering the previous day's events. He jumped out, got dress, and ran out of the house.

_Going to check on Sakura? _the voice asked.

_Of course..._ Ryo answered, running down the street.

He turned around the corner and saw an ambulance in front of Sakura's house.

_No..._ he thought.

He sprinted over, into the yard, and flung open the door, to find Sakura's father.

"Ryo?"he asked, standing up from the couch.

"Why's there an ambulance here?"Ryo asked.

"Last night Sakura fell asleep at her computer, so I put her to bed...but she hasn't responded when I tried to wake her up. At first I thou-"Sakura's father was cut-off as Ryo ran down the hallway to Sakura's room.

He slowly opened Sakura's door and saw two people putting her in a stretcher.

"What's wrong with Sakura!?"Ryo asked, his eyes starting to feel watery.

"We can explain later, for now we have to get this girl to the hospital,"one of the doctors said, pushing Ryo aside and pulling the front end of the stretcher out.

Ryo and Mr.Ominari followed the doctors into the back of the ambulance. The doors closed and they rushed off.

"So what's wrong with my daughter?"Mr.Ominari asked sullenly.

"We can't be positive as of yet, but if it turns out to be what looks like then they she might have gotten off lightly,"the doctor replied, locking down the stretcher.

"What's it look like?"Ryo asked, his eyes burning.

"You two do know of the recent epidemic of people falling into coma's while suffering internal damage, right?"

"You mean where people's insides have been damaged, but the outside of the person looks untouched?"Ryo confirmed, knowing from experience what it was like.

"It's possible it happened to her, but she's seems fine, and if she managed to last overnight she's probably going to recover quickly. She's actually pretty lucky..."

"What's lucky about this!? If she was lucky she w-"Ryo cut-off, knowing the real cause of the problem and knowing luck wouldn't have helped.

"Ryo, please. This is hard for me too, but try to stay calm,"Mr.Ominari said.

Ryo obeyed and sat back down. Sakura's life meant less to the doctor than to her father and Ryo, this was known, but it didn't feel right to Ryo. Tension filled the back of the ambulance and an awkward silence with it.

"Doctor,"Mr.Ominari said to break the silence,"the problem with Sakura...what's it called?"

"No official name has been decided yet, but the internet has been calling it Internal Anguish. If you're going to look up information that name probably won't help. We have some magazines at the hospital, you can probably get something on it from there."

The ambulance stopped shortly, and Sakura was being taken out by doctors in green outfits. One in a white coat had motioned the two to follow him.

"Umm, doctor, where are we going?"Mr.Ominari asked.

"Call me Dr.Hirogashi,"the doctor replied, looking at a clipboard.

Something about the doctor felt familiar to Ryo.

"Dr.Hirogashi then, where are we going?"

"A waiting room, while they do an examination of Sakura,"the doctor replied.

The finally came up to two large doors to the waiting room. He opened them and the waiting room resembled a typical living room environment, but with extra chairs. The room had a white and red scheme between the walls, floor, and furniture.

The doctor offered the two a seat and went to the chair across from them. As he turned around and sat down Ryo saw the face for the first time.

"Data!"Ryo shouted.

"Huh?"Mr.Ominari asked.

"Hmm? I'm sorry, but do you want information, there are easier way then calling out data. Being rude isn't encouraged,"Mr.Hirogashi replied.

Ryo stared at the doctor, it had to be Data. His clothes conisisted of a brown looking business suit beneath the white coat, but that wasn't enough to fool Ryo. Mr.Hirogashi stared back at Ryo. His eyes closed for a second and his head nodded real quick, then returned to a normal expression one might find on a doctor.

_What was that just now? _Ryo thought.

_He was telling you that he is Data, but not to call him that. _the voice answered.

_You were able to tell just from that? _Ryo asked.

_I like to think I'm in the least pretty intelligent... _the voice commented.

Ryo shook his head, he had more important things to worry about, even though worrying wasn't going to accomplish thing.

"It's odd,"Data said suddenly.

Mr.Ominari and Ryo looked over at him.

"Along with your sister, another boy came in in a similar status."

"You kno-"Ryo began but cut-off, knowing Data was just putting on an act,"Another boy?"

"Yeah, I can't reveal any information, but he actually came in the other night. If this is the same thing then it'll probably just take a few weeks before they'll be back to normal,"Data said, looking some papers.

_He means Dylan _the voice explained.

Ryo looked down at the ground. He had been so worried about Sakura, Dylan didn't even cross his mind.

_I want to discreetly ask him if he knows about Gyuni and Cuoka... _Ryo thought.

_Say 'How many people have come in this condition within the last 24 hours'. _the voice suggested.  
"How many people have come in this condition within the last 24 hours?"Ryo asked.

Data gave an approving smirk to Ryo, probably for figuring out how to discreetly ask.

"Well on average four people every week or so probably end up like this. I mean, without falling into a coma,"Data answered.

_He's saying aside from you and Suichi the others are in the same shape as Sakura._

"I see..."Ryo replied, his eyes closed.

It didn't bother Ryo so much when he had been sent to the hospital. It was him and not the others, and he wasn't as bad as they were. The combination of his ignorance at the time and how he cared about others more allowed him to treat his hospital time as nothing big. However, now it was endangering his friends, and because of Ryo's inability to protect them he found it more crushing.

He pulled out his cellphone and called Suichi.

"Hello?"Suichi asked on the other side.

"It's Ryo,"he replied sullenly.

"Have you learned what happened to the others!?"Suichi asked.

"Yes..."Ryo replied slowly

"And?..."Suichi asked, although he probably had a good idea what happened.

"It's basically like what happened to me around the end of fall, but they have it worse..."

"I see..."

There was a silence between the two.

"I'll let you know the results of the examination,"Ryo finally said.

"Alright...thanks,"Suichi replied, before hanging up.

Ryo closed his cellphone and check the time on it. It was going on 3:00 already, so Ryo figured he woke up late.

"How much longer until the examination finishes?"Ryo asked.

"If you're hungry, you probably have time,"Data replied.

"Mind if I go with him, Mr.Hirogashi?"Mr.Ominari asked.

"Hmm? I have no problems, but please try to return quickly, I'm almost off the clock,"Data replied, checking his watch.

_Is there any meaning in that? _Ryo asked the voice.

_He might be saying that he has to return to wherever Code is soon._

"Ryo..."Mr.Ominari said, sitting down at the table with his food.

Ryo looked up, acknowledging him.

"Sakura has had her eye on you for awhile, don't do anything that'll hurt her..."he said.

"I won't..."Ryo replied, even though he had no plans to anyways.

After lunch the results had come in and the doctor's guess from before had come in. Sakura wasn't in a coma, but she was in a deep sleep. The doctors began work on halting any further damage on her battered body. They wanted to make as much progress as possible before she woke up. Ryo had gotten a ride home where he ate silently ate dinner, and went into his room. He layed down on his bed, staring at his ceiling.

"I'll make sure to prevent this from happening anymore..."Ryo whispered aloud.

_How do you plan to do so? _the voice asked.

"I'll think of something...seeing my friends in such a state..."

_Ryo...I wish for you to make a pact with me..._

"A...pact?"Ryo asked dully.

_Share your body with me._

"Why do you need my body?"Ryo asked, his eyes empty...almost soulless.

_There are times where I believe I can better handle a situation. Do this for me and I will lend you my intelligence and protect your body when you tire out._

"Will it help me with the AIs?"

_That's the main reason I wish for this pact._

"If it's for my revenge,"Ryo paused,"I'll do it."

_Very well, you have my thanks. I'll make the nessecary requirements, for now try to sleep._

In such in absense state of mind it wasn't difficult at all and Ryo's body slowly drifting into the darkness of sleep.

_Ryo? _the voice called out.

Ryo felt his presence appear from thin air. He stood up in the darkness and a purple mist covered the ground.

_Ryo, can you hear me?_

Ryo nodded.

_Very well, I'll begin the process..._

A shining white light appeared and slowly began to take the form of human. It turned towards Ryo who stared dully unflinching, even as the human-shaped light drew a sword towards him. The light raised the sword and slashed on Ryo, cutting him in half.

_Because of his emotional state he'll feel little pain...this is good._

The human-shaped light grabbed the left side of the body and slowly became drained in. As the last rays of light disappeared into Ryo's left side it was fully white now and the two halves rejoined with a flash.

Ryo's right eye opened, the blue and dull eye, staring at the roof. The left side of his body felt heavy, but soon returned to normal. His left eye opened, gray with red streaks. He sat up, and grabbed some clothes and went to the shower. He stared into the mirror as he undressed, he felt as though he still had full control of his body, but his left eye looked like a curse. An omen of some sort. He stepped into the shower, the cold water had little affect on Ryo in his state of mind. He remembered that pact he had made with the voice in head.

_This eye...is his eye now. _Ryo thought to himself.

There was a following silence as he waited for a response from the voice, but nothing came. He wasn't fully able to understand the pact, but he did feel different. The presence of the voice felt as though it had vanished, he had a self awareness about his left eye, and it felt as though he had entered a higher state of mind overnight.

He finished his shower, got dressed, and walked outside. It didn't snow too often, but a light layer of snow covered the ground today. Ryo found himself walking towards the park, his mind empty, but at the same time overflowing. He sat down on the benches next to the pond.

"The place I was forced to go on a date with Sakura..."he said quietly, his eyes full of absence.

He began walking towards the library. Pausing before he walked in.

"The first time I came here was with Sakura...then later with Dylan..."

He walked in and looked around. The library must have gone through some renovations, it looked different then before. It mattered little to Ryo as he walked back outside. He saw some vendors pushing their stands into the park.

"Dylan was in one of those...I never did learn why,"Ryo commented, before walking down the street.

He eventually came upon the Demion Hotel.

"Dylan's uncle owns this. I came here with Dylan...when we first met Data."

Ryo continued going to location after location.The life seemingly absent, leaving him in a trance. He finally made it home as the sun began to set. The orange glow of his surrounding looked like a fire. He closed his eyes while looking out the window and opened them. Like magic the fiery glow of the surrounding absorbed into Ryo's eyes. His eyes narrowed, staring over at his computer, which had laid untouched for the past two days.

"I will get revenge...I promise,"Ryo vowed.

He picked up his cellphone and called Orion.

"Orion?"Ryo asked.

"Yeah, Ryo?"

"I want to take up Code's offer. Go to the place he was talking about where I can focus on fighting the AIs without worry about parents or school."

"Really? You sure you want to?"

"Yes."

"Alright, give us two days, tomorrow we'll let your parents know, and pick you up the day afterwards."

"Thanks..."Ryo replied, before hanging up.

The next day Ryo was laying on the couch, his mother was in the kitchen when the doorbell rang.

"Can you get that Ryo?"his mom asked.

Ryo got up and answered the door. As he thought it was Orion and Data. Data, in a formal suit, and Orion in a lab coat over his his typical japanese-style, black school uniform.

"Is one of your parents home, Ryo?"Data asked, adjusting his glasses which were for show.

"Mom, there are some people at the door who wanna talk,"Ryo replied, playing along.

Ryo's mother walked over.

"How can I help you two?"she asked, wiping her hands on an apron she was wearing.

"We'd like to talk about Ryo's education. We work for a special institute for children possessing amazing potential. Umm, may we come in?"Data asked.

"Oh, sure,"Ryo's mom replied, leading them into the living room.

"As I was saying,"Data began, as he sat down,"the institute takes children who show amazing potential. Even if the grades aren't great it doesn't mean the child isn't smart. So we tend to be very selective with who we choose."

"And you're interested in Ryo?"his mom asked.

"Of course. That's why we're here,"Orion said.

"If you don't mind my asking, why Ryo?"

"Well, we've been given some examples of his work, his train of throught is quite interesting. Also his talents are of an odd combination, but we believe we can make it work."

"Is there any paper work, so I can get information on this place?"

"Oh, of course,"Data replied notioning for Orion to hand Ryo's mom some papers,"And before we go any further. We should probably introduce ourselves. I'm Kiba Nonimocho, a counsler from the institute, and this is Dr.Reno, he'll be in charge of Ryo's education providing you agree to him coming with us."

_Where do they get all these fake names. _Ryo thought to himself.

"So according to this paper all students live on campus?"Ryo's mom asked.

"Yes, but of course relatives have visitation rights, it's not like all communication is abandoned,"Data replied.

"Well I suppose ultimately it'll be up to Ryo, but-"Ryo's mom began.

"Oh, you don't have to decide now, but we believe it would be easier if you decided by tomorrow at the latest. This way you can talk it over, read through the information, and prepare the paperwork on your side,"Orion butted it.

"Actually, I had been looking at their institute for awhile, it's not going to cost anything to go either,"Ryo mentioned.

"Ah, well I suppose we've talked enough, you can look through the pamphlets, if you have any questions we'll be by tomorrow around this time, unless of course you'd prefer to talk more?"Data asked.

"Well I was just preparing lunch, I could set up some more servings,"Ryo's mom offered.

Data and Orion accepted, talking it over with Ryo's mom. Ryo discovered the two were very talented at their work. Ryo's mother went from being skeptical to being honored that Ryo was going. That night, they did the paper work, Ryo knowing it was just for show. The next day both Orion and Data returned and their job from the other day had proved to be successful. Ryo's mother had little objection to him leaving for the 'institute'. His bags were ready from earlier and he put them in the trunk of Orion's town car. The same car he had used when he picked Ryo and his friends up for the first meeting with Code.

Ryo opened the door and took a seat, resting his eyes. He would finally be able to work towards defeating AIs, getting his vengeance, and putting this all to an end.

"It's been less than a week and you've already made it to the team,"someone said from the seat next to him as the car took off.

Ryo opened his eyes and looked over. He saw Code, but in all honesty wasn't surprised, he was expecting something like that.

"Even if the other four don't join, if we have Ryo our odds are already improving. Isn't that what you're thinking Code?"Data asked, driving.

"Well one of the things, yes. I'm curious about Suichi as well. Kiane is still a kid, I don't expect him to get caught up into this seriously, but Suichi is the only other one not in the hospital. Since he usually takes the leader role I would've thought he would've made contact by now, but his relaxed personality might have prevented him from doing so,"Code answered.

"He said he didn't want to get caught up in this. However, in being around me he was caught up. We've been friends since middle school so I can't see him abandoning me, but I don't see him diving in head first either. He may end up joining later,"Ryo responded.

"You seem different, Ryo."

"I do?"

"Yeah, it's not just your eye either, your personality in general is more serious now. Could this have been caused by Sakura perhaps?"Code said.

"It's not just Sakura,"Ryo replied, turning slightly pink.

"But for now let's just worry about you, Ryo."

"Sorry to interrupt you're buddy-buddy conversation, but, Code, don't you think you should explain what he'll be doing? So he knows what he's getting into?"Orion suggested.

"Ah, it appears I was sidetracked a bit. Well, Ryo, I'll summarize it for now, we'll get more in depth later. Since you'll be with us we'll be working in five different catagories for you. You'll be working on hand to hand combat, to learn how to better control your body and how to integrate it into your weapon use, you'll be learning professionally how to use a sword so you'll be more efficient with it in "The World", you'll of course be keeping up with your school work, you'll be training in "The World", and lastly you'll be competing in PKing in order to get better suited towards fighting enemies who can think."

"PKing is against the rules though,"Ryo replied.

"In town it is, but in a field there isn't much they can do to stop you. I have people currently working towards getting everything set up for when you begin that stage though,"Code assured him.

As the ride continued they finally reached their destination. It turned out the reason they kept using 'institute' was because they really were going to an institute. On the outside it really could've passed as a serious academic school, but it really resembled more of a research institute. They drove into the gate, which automatically closed behind them and drove into the institute's garage to the far left side. The four got out after door cut off. Ryo noticed quite a few vehicles parked inside, it was about the size of a sub-terrain parking lot.

"Data, go get things ready for Ryo. Orion get his bags,"Code ordered, once out of the car.

The two did so.

"I'll take Ryo around showing him the main locations he'll be at, just leave his bags in the room,"Code replied.

"Will do,"Orion answered, taking Ryo's bag out one door.

"As you can probably tell if we go anywhere we have a decent selection of vehicles to fit the disguise being used. Before we meet your trainers or the room you'll be using when playing "The World", let's stop off by the cafe, where you'll be getting your meals,"Code suggested, leading the way.

Ryo followed behind him, on the inside it wasn't too hard to keep track of where everything was, most of the rooms seemed by quite large, around the size of typical high school cafeteria or bigger. They came up to the cafe, which was looked like an add-on to the building. It was on the backside of building and had glass walls. The roof had an electronic covering, so you get shade on a sunny day, or leave it as a glass roof in case whoever was in charge wanted to have a glass roof as well.

"They have preselected meals each day, but as far as variety goes there's usually at least eight or so choices, not much to really mention here,"Code said, before continueing to walk.

Inside the cafe there was at least thirty people. It looked like a normal cafeteria, Ryo was somewhat disappointed. He expected something more out of the ordinary.

"How many people work for you Code?"Ryo asked, as they walked to the room where Ryo would be playing "The World".

"Quite a few, probably not 100, but close. They usually do grunt work. I really only have four apprentices, but I have around 80 or so people doing grunt work until they're ready to be an apprentice. Since there's an opening everyone is working unusually hard, but I believe Orion will be getting it. He has been doing surprisingly well, he'll probably surpass my other apprentices quickly,"Code answered.

"Why is it that the Orion and Data we know tend to be the two who work closest to you?"Ryo asked.

"Well, Orion becuase really, he's passed all requirements and stages to becoming an apprentice, but by set rules I have to wait so long before taking on another apprentice after one leaves or something happens to one,"Code answered.

"So you've really gotten this whole thing organized."

"Yeah, as for Data though, he's shown great effort, passed the O and E phases, and has done exceedingly well so far in the data phase. I've also made those two the main trackers of your group so you've just seen them a lot. I have others who do field work as well."

Ryo was surprised by how complex and thorough Code was in his organization. Originally Code was thought to be a super hacker, but it actually turned out he was beyond a super hacker. He was someone who at the age 15 was capable of leading roughly 80 or so people in an organization without anyone picking up on it. Someone who had the intelligence that was being compared to Sherlock Holmes. And was someone who was super hacker.

"This is the computer room,"Code said, putting his hand on a wall.

The wall lit up and revealed a door which Ryo and Code walked into to. It looked like something out of a science fiction movie. There was a lower level with few rows of computers, some which looked to have data, others had "The World" on the monitor. In the middle of the room was a higher platform where there appeared to be a large super computer, the size of a closet, and the keyboard was easily bigger than a computer's CPU.

"In here you'll be playing "The World". I'll be honest, if you look at the VR Helmet later, it'll look different. This is because we moniter several things while you play, you won't feel any difference even though we take information directly from the brain. There's nothing to worry about, but I felt you should know, so it wouldn't seem like we were hiding it,"Code said, before walking back out and leading him to the next room.

The took the elevator up to the third floor.

"This floor is more or less where the apprentices, myself, top grunts, and you will be living."

"Eh, 'top grunts'? What do you mean by that?"Ryo asked, as they began to work to his room.

"Like the Orion and Data you know, ones who've either completed all the phases, but aren't an apprentice, or are exceedingly good. It's a form of encouragement and privilage to those who do good,"Code explained.

They came up to a room with 47 on the front and walked in. The room look particularly well-furnished. There was a wide-screen flat panel TV in the wall across from a plush looking recliner. To one corner was the king size bed, that looked 'hotel-comfortable' as Ryo would have put it. The sea-blue carpet had a certain aura coming from it that made the room seem tranquil. He had a walk in closet, bed-side table and lamp, and a large dresser as well. As Ryo checked inside the closet he found another door across from the first one which led to a private bathroom that had a garden tub, shower, and other neccesities.

"I'll let you alone to pack. Orion will by later to bring you to your meet your trainer,"Code said, dismissing himself.

Ryo started by putting away his clothes, he put a display sword he brought from his house, and grabbed some CD's he brought with him. He threw a few magazines in the hidden shelf beneath the TV and looked around after putting everything away. He had his own personal shampoo, soap, toothbrush, and so on in the bathroom so he didn't have to worry about bring those.

After everything was put away it still felt like something was missing, but he couldn't put his finger on it. He sat down in the chair which was pleasantly comfortable, but still couldn't shake the feeling. Orion knocked on the door before opening it. Ryo realized it then, it was the Skyld plushie. It felt like a sign, despite the fact it was just a plushie, that Skyld wasn't going to trust him anymore. Ryo followed Code to the first trainer. He dismissed the thought. He was working next to Code now, so if Skyld wasn't going to accept Code he couldn't accept Ryo anymore. It would be pointless to worry about him now. Ryo still felt weird about the situation though, like they were tied by some string which was now cut.

"Ryo?"Orion said, flicking him in the forehead.

Ryo rubbed his forehead.

"What?"Ryo replied coming out of a trance-like state.

Ryo hadn't even noticed he had been walking from his room.

"This is Sensei Byaku. He trained me when I first entered the orion stage. And as you've seen, I have a sixth sense when it comes to fighting. Listen to him and you'll be just as good,"Orion said.

"This Ryo is certainly a well-supplied fireplace from the bird's mouth,"Sensei Byaku commented.

He looked like any old man you might find in an old Japanese movie. Gray beard, about a foot long, but braided as it went down, he was completely bald. He was a bit shorter than Ryo, but didn't really seem as scrawnie. He wore a loose looking, long sleeve shirt, and pants that got wider the lower it wnet down. The outfit almost looked like a black robe, since both articles of clothing were a dark black.

"I'm a fireplace?"Ryo asked, with one eye brow raised, after his observation.

"He tends to talk in metaphors, you'll get used to it. He's saying that you're like a well-supplied fireplace that you can set on fire. Meaning at the moment there isn't much, but there's a good amount of potential in you. the bird thing is because there was talk about circulating around here,"Orion translated,"He'll be your trainer for both swords and hand-to-hand combat. He also does firearms, but you won't be doing that."

"Ah, nice to meet you, Sensei Byaku,"Ryo replied, bowing.

Orion had a sweatdrop go down his head.

"Ryo, what we do around around here is shape our hand like we're grabbing a fist and hold it in front of our eye. To symbolize dexterity, seeing every move, and sharpening our skills. Also covering the eye from both people represents an equal handicap for a fair fight,"Orion said, demonstrating it.

He formed his hand as though he grabbed a fist and raised in front of his eye, palm away from his eye.

"That seems kind of odd,"Ryo muttered.

"But sometimes a spork works better than a fork,"Sensei Byaku replied.

"He means, sometimes something that seems odd or different can work better than something generally used,"Orion translated.

"Oh you mean how this symbolizes more than just a fair fight and respect towards your opponant?"Ryo asked.

"Yeah, now you're catching on,"Orion said, complimenting Ryo.

"Please help me improve my skill,"Ryo said to Sensei Byaku, while doing the greeting.

"That was all for today, if you want you can relax, everything will start tomorrow,"Orion told him.

"Okay,"Ryo said.

He returned to the elevator and went up a floor. He entered his room and laid down on the bed.

_Starting tomorrow I'll be working towards getting revenge for you guys, don't worry. _Ryo thought to himself.

He almost fell into sleep before someone knocked on his door.

"Ryo, it's Data. Let's go get dinner."

"Alright,"Ryo replied, getting back up, wiping his eyes.

* * *

Reviews so on welcome. passes out 


	20. Chapter 21:Training

Alright, last week I had one problem after another, first I couldn't sign in, then I wasn't able to upload any documents, and after those problems got fixed my internet was going to slow to upload any documents. I originally planned on posting it a bit late, but instead I ended up doing some extra work in school. Anyways, to make up for it, I'll post the original chapter I was going to do last week, this week's chapter, and throw in what would've been next week's chapter. After actually thinking about it, it was pretty well planned out, because starting next week "The World" officially regains it's place as the main setting of the story. Enjoy.

* * *

The alarm clock went off, and Ryo slowly pushed himself up. He looked over at his alarm clock on the night stand.

"5:30,"Ryo grumbled, turning it off.

He climbed out of bed, grabbing some clothes as he walked into the shower. _That's right, I finally start training today. _Ryo thought. He was hoping someone would guide him on the first day, he didn't even know when to go where. He finished his shower and walked back into his room getting some clothes on.

"I have...Hand-to-hand training, sword training, training in "The World", school work, later something about PKing..."Ryo reminded himself.

Someone knocked on his door all of a sudden. He walked over and found a short kid standing there. He appeared to be nine or 10. He wore baggy black pants, secured at his waste by a stud covered belt. He had no shoes or socks on, and looked kind of pale. A black shirt which had faded gray looked as though it was a few sizes too big for him. The oddest thing about the kid was probably his large yellow eyes. They seemed unsettling to stare into. The eyes were enough of an oddity with such an oddball color, but it wasn't just the eyes, the kid's hair was the same sort of dark yellow, but not blonde.

"Hello?"Ryo said, curiously.

"I'm Orion,"the kid replied.

Ryo stared at him, the picture of the 18 year old Orion in his mind. The kid stared back at him, this Orion's face was void of emotions.

"Orion is only a part of the step before becoming Code's apprentice...So I guess it would make since that there would be more than one..."Ryo said to himself.

"If it get to confusing, just call me Orai,"the kid replied, cutting the name Orion in half.

"Alright, Orai,"Ryo replied,"So what are you here for?"

"I'm supposed to be your mentor for the first few days until you get into the flow of things. I'll also join you and the Orion you know in "The World","Orai answered.

"Very well,"Ryo said, feeling awkward that an unusually mature seeming kid was going to be his mentor.

"Breakfast ends at 9:30, but you need to be at Sensei Byaku's room for your warm-ups by 7:00, since it's roughly 6:00 now, let's try to stay on time for the first day,"Orai replied.

Ryo almost wanted to laugh. The fact a kid so young was acting mature just amused him. They began by stopping off at the cafe. Ryo sufficed with a bowl of cereal, toast, and a cup of juice for now. They found a table by a wall and sat down.

"Code wanted me to make sure to mention,"Orai suddenly said, upon sitting down.

"What?"Ryo asked.

"You're schedule will be loosely followed, and depending on how things work at first, you'll recieve a more appropriate schedule. As for the moment though, You're to be with Sensei Byaku at 9:30 where you'll be evaluated. You'll join his class at 10:00 for hand-to-hand combat where you'll be introduced to the other students. You'll be there until 11:30 where you'll have an hour break for lunch before you report for sword evaluation at 12:30 and sword combat at 1:00. After that we'll go immediantly to the computer room to train in "The World" until Code will say so. After dinner you have nothing for moment, but later when it's set up you'll practice PK'ing,"Orai explained.

"What about my school work?"Ryo asked.

"At the start of each week you'll be given a test that will go over what you'll be doing for the week in each class. Depending on how well you do on the test, Code will have grades put in. During the week before the test though, you'll be given material to study off of, and a few worksheets you can do for practice if you choose to,"Orai answered.

Ryo began to feel more unsettled than before. Along with the mature attitude and eyes, this kid was as well informed as everyone else in contact with Code. It felt as though he was going to be stuck in a building with a bunch of a super geniuses while he himself was average or so. He shook the thought out of his head, remembering his goal and why he was here.

"What about work for this week?"Ryo asked.

"Freebie 100s for now,"Orai answered.

Ryo finished is breakfast and followed Orai, who hadn't eaten through the hallways until they came up to the dojo as Ryo called it.

"Ah, before you go, Orai,"Ryo said to Orai who was about to walk away.

"Yes?"Orai asked.

"If you don't mind me asking, how far through the steps to becoming an apprentice have you gotten?"

"You're curious because of my age I take it?"Orai countered with a question.

"Well, yes,"Ryo answered.

"I'm actually still in the data phase, but Code wanted me to try going into the orion phase for the moment. So technically I'm in two phases at once, but officially I'm in the orion stage. I still have yet to start the eclipse phase."

"Impressive,"Ryo said lowly.

Orai turned around and continued to walk away. The door to the dojo suddenly opened and Sensei Byaku pulled Ryo in. The two did the greeting and Sensei Byaku walked into the other room to grab something.

Ryo observered the room, it was quite large. The room seemed to be split into two main sections. On one side it looked like a square, tatami arena was placed with room around the edge for onlookers. The other side, that Ryo was in now, by the door, was probably where Sensei Byaku would talk, show moves, or something. There was a stage-like elevation of the floor on one end and the rest was a basic padded floor, flat with nothing in particular to decorate it.

"Ryo, in here,"Sensei Byaku called out.

Ryo stood up and walked through a second door to find a locker room.

"You're storage will be 47, like your home,"Sensei Byaku said.

There was a weird presence in his voice, probably because he was forcing himself to speak normally for Ryo, instead of how he would usually speak. Ryo walked over and opened it up, finding a uniform similar to Sensei Byaku's but instead of it being completely black it had white borders.

"Are these borders like a belt in other martial arts?"Ryo asked.

"A bush and a tree are different, but are both plants,"he replied, but quickly said,"I mean, yes."

Ryo scratched his head, it felt awkward having someone speak in metaphors, but also felt awkward having speak differently than they usually would for him.

Sensei Byaku left the room so Ryo could change. The uniform fit perfectly, it had an airy sort of feel in the way the sleeves and leggings were made to grow as it went towards the end of the limbs. The outfit felt as though it was made so there would be little interferance with movement, Ryo guessed, but the way it was made, you couldn't wear it outside without it catching onto a lot of things. He walked out back into the main room and found Sensei Byaku sitting on the tatami arena.

"Ah, the evaluation?"Ryo asked.

"Yes, Ryo,"Sensei Byaku, replied standing up.

The two did the gesture before fighting.

"You go first,"Sensei Byaku said, putting his arms by his sides.

Ryo shrugged then walked forward. Sensei Byaku didn't move. Ryo walked forward a bit faster. Sensei Byaku didn't move. Ryo brought his arm forward to punch, but stopped just before hitting him.

"No one sticks their hand in a thorn bush without gloves,"Sensei Byaku said, unflinching.

"I'm not even going to pretend I know what that means,"Ryo replied cluelessly.

"You did not strike me, because you did not possess knowledge of what exactly you are supposed to be doing,"Sensei Byaku tried to explain.

"I think that sounds right,"Ryo replied, blinking.

"Don't be afraid to hold back, It's not likely you'll be able to hurt me."

Ryo nodded and kneeled down. He brought his foot around with intentions of tripping Sensei Byaku, but ended up getting pinned down by one of Sensei Byaku's feet.

"Ah, the birds have eggs more than once in a lifetime,"Sensei Byaku said with a sweatdrop.

_This is going to be hell. I can't understand him _Ryo complained in his head.

"He's saying 'Let's try again.',"someone said walking in. Ryo figured it was Orion because of the voice.

Ryo sighed, and stood back up. The two did the gesture and Ryo charged forward. Sensei Byaku took one of his hands and curled it into a fist with the exception of his index finger. Ryo aimed at Sensei's Byaku's face, but missed as the teacher ducked. Sensei Byaku thrusted his finger towards the bottom of Ryo's rib cage causing him to lose his breath. Ryo caughed a few times, but managed to stay up.

"Either Sensei is taking it really easy or Ryo has a lot of drive,"Orion commented.

Ryo stumbled forward and fell onto one knee.

"Perhaps...birds may lay eggs twice, but they don't need hatch that time,"Sensei Byaku responded.

"Translation:You didn't do much better, but that's all for now,"Orion said.

Ryo's pupils suddenly shrank and his right eye began to change into the same color as his left, gray with red streaks. Ryo pushed himself back up.

"His breath is back already,"Orion said, surprised.

"Let's not finish just yet,"Ryo replied, standing up.

"Perhaps the egg may contain the life of a bird after all,"Sensei Byaku replied with a quick grin.

Ryo ran forward and threw a quick punch with his left hand. It was blocked of course, but in the process Ryo had already formed another punch in progress with his right. He skimmed Sensei Byaku's clothing as he jumped back, cuasing Ryo to miss. Sensei Byaku quickly countered by palm thrusting towards Ryo's face, but he had ducked to the side dodging it. As Sensei Byaku tried to bring his arm back, Ryo grabbed onto it and forced it to the mat, using his own hands to pin down Sensei Byaku's. Sensei Byaku tried to retaliate by striking at Ryo's wrists with hands shaped like a bee's stinger, but Ryo had already brought his foot forward pinning the other hand down.

"Legs can bend like that?"Orion replied, wide eyed with a sweat drop going down his head.

"Ah, Sometimes a bird from darkness is just as good as bird used to his eyes,"Sensei Byaku said, before pulling both his hands up tossing Ryo off.

Ryo was forced into a backflip from the toss and landed face first, the rest of his body falling afterwards. He sat up rubbing his nose until Orion offered him a hand up. He opened his eyes which. His right eye was back to it's normal blue shade. Sensei Byaku was holding his hand on his chin.

"So how was it?"Orion asked, curious about Ryo's interesting performance.

"Perhaps sunlight can reach this cave,"Sensei Byaku replied,"Orion, watch the child, for now will you?"

"Er, of course,"Orion replied.

Sensei Byaku walked out of the room with an odd expression on his face.

"What was that sunlight thing?"Ryo asked, feeling like an idiot.

"Honestly, I can't think of anything appropriate it would fit as,"Orion replied, rubbing the back of his head.

"What are you doing here anyways, Orion?"

"Me? I had a moment of free time between your preperation and wanted to see how you were doing."

"My preperations?"Ryo asked.

"Well the whole situation in "The World" is Code's main project at the moment. You're the probably the most valuable thing in his eyes right now,"Orion replied.

"That sounded literally gay,"Ryo responded, looking out of the corner of his eyes at Orion.

"Oh well. Anyways, we have to get you a computer set up so you can go on "The World", also we're trying to get one in your room, so you can check your e-mail and stuff."

"How are Sakura and the others doing?"Ryo asked, on a more serious note.

"They're improving, it isn't as bad as it looked, they've recovered quickly."

"Before though, Data said they were worse off than I was."

"Well, they're going to recover completely within a week or so. This means it's good news then,"Orion replied.

"That's true,"Ryo replied with a relieved smile crossing his face.

"You do realize you said 'Sakura and the others', right?"Orion replied, with a grin.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Since you knew the Dylan the longest it would've made more since to say 'Dylan and the others'. Because you said Sakura and the others, you know what that means,"Orion continued.

Ryo blushed slightly.

"Well, I can't say I hate her can I?"He replied nervously, scratching the back of his head.

"I think you two would make a good couple, if you get the chance you try asking her on a date in the least,"Orion suggested.

_I wonder if this is what it feels like to have an older brother _Ryo thought to himself.

The door opened and the two looked over. Some man probably in his late 20's walked in.

"Who's that?"Ryo asked.

"Probably one of the students,"Orion said before turning to the man,"Sensei Byaku's out right now, he'll be right back so go ahead and get changed."

The man nodded and walked into the locker room. Almost immediantly afterwards Sensei Byaku walked back in.

"I'll wait here after class, we can have lunch together," Orion offered.

Ryo nodded and waved as Orion left.

_With the way people act around here, you can almost forget it's place to be trained by a legendary hacker _Ryo thought to himself.

The remaining students soon filed in. Including Ryo there were roughly 25 students, possibly more. Everyone started off with stretches, including Ryo who was still slightly short of breath. After some warm-ups the groups were seperated. The higher ranked students were given some advice and sent off to spar with eachother while the lower ranking students went over the basics, because of Ryo. Sensei Byaku kept the students busy until 11:15, the rough hour seemed to pass by in a matter of minutes before they were dismissed to go change. A few students stayed for a bit more practice, but Ryo walked out, panting from exhaustion.

"Let's go,"Orai said to him, as Ryo walked out.

Ryo turned around in surprise. He didn't realize Orai was in the class as well.

"Why didn't you say anything to me during training?"Ryo asked, between breaths.

"There wasn't a need to. I'm to be your mentor, not a distraction,"Orai said, you could see he was slighlty panting as well.

"Ouch, you got stuck with Ta-...that Data,"Orion said, walking over.

"Is it a bad thing?"Ryo asked.

"He has a tendancy to scare off his partners,"Orion explained.

"You're planning on joining him for lunch as well?"Orai guessed.

"Yeah, he's like a little brother almost,"Orion answered.

_Little brother? Hmm, I never acted like this to Hiro... _Ryo thought, feeling a slight twinge of guilt for being neglectful.

"Oh, and Orai said he was my mentor, not my partner,"Ryo finally responded.

"Yeah, he usually says that, but Code assigns new people with a partner. Even though you aren't really training to be an apprentice I guess he felt like assigning you a partner. That...or he feels kiddo here needs to learn to work with people better,"Orion replied.

Ryo smiled nervously, looking over at Orai, who didn't respond in a negative or positive fashion. The three walked into the cafe again, got their meals and sat down.

"So, Orion, what does Code have you doing, in particular, aside from preperations?"Ryo asked.

"Nothing particularly interesting. Honestly, I've finished everything I have to do in all the stages, so I just tend to do whatever is required, whenever. If there's nothing to do I usually just lounge around, practice a few things here or there."

"For future reference, Orion, as of yesterday, I've also become Orion,"Orai replied.

"Ah, right,"Orion replied, with a sweatdrop.

Ryo had began to get full after half of the large BLT. He noticed Orai hadn't gotten anything for lunch either.

"Don't you have to eat?"Ryo asked, pushing his tray towards the middle of the table.

"He get's specialized meals. As I'm sure you've noticed by the eyes and hair he isn't normal. He's easily going to improve much more rapidly than anyone else in the institute because of his odd biology."

"What's so odd about it? If I'm allowed to ask,"Ryo responded politely

"I'm what's been deemed as a 'super human'. My appearance remains similar to that of a normal human, but my physical and mental abilities are far above what a usual human's should be at my age. Higher than what's normal for a prodigy even,"Orai answered.

"Oh, so you're problem with people is just you're ego,"Ryo replied with a sweatdrop.

"Not really,"Orion responded,"It's odd how humans act. You would think parents would be over joyed to have a 'super child', but when they discovered how he evolved differently than normal humans he became an outcast to even his parents. Humans have a weaker version of what animals have when it comes to sensing things. Because of the harsh attitude he recieved from his parents, other people could feel the sort of vibes that were sent to him and responded in a similar manner. Not many humans are willing to accept thing out of the ordinary though." Orion was scratching the back of his head.

Ryo looked over at Orai who still hadn't shown any facial expression.

"As far as I'm concerned, if I can get along with him personality wise, then it doesn't matter what his biology is like,"Ryo replied.

"It's almost time for your sword evaluation,"Oria said.

"Do you have it with me?"Ryo asked.

Orai shook his head.

"Alright, we'll finish up your computer. Good luck with the sword evaluation,"Orion said.

Ryo nodded and began walking away awhile waving.

_Hand-to-hand combat isn't my specialty, but swords I should be pretty good in _Ryo thought to himself. He managed to get back to Sensei Byaku's room without much trouble. He opened it up seeing Sensei Byaku doing some warm-ups.

"I'm here for the sword evaluation?"Ryo said, walking in.

"For now, your claws will look like your fangs,"Sensei Byaku replied.

Ryo paused for a second.

"You mean, I'll wear the same clothes?"Ryo asked, he felt like he was starting to get used to it.

Sensei Byaku nodded and walked towards a wall with bamboo swords on it. Ryo was in the locker room getting on his uniform again. He walked out to find Sensei Byaku holding two swords. One was offered to Ryo. They did the pose, holding the sword in the unused hand, before getting into a stance of their own. Ryo held his up, like he would in "The World", but since this sword wasn't oversized he didn't look like he would fall forward at any point.

"Begin when you wish,"Sensei Byaku ordered.

Ryo ran forward and slashed downwards, but Sensei Byaku merely stepped to the side, dodging it. Ryo tried to quickly slash horizontally, but was blocked by Sensei Byaku's sword that was merely sitting, tip on the ground and handle in his hand. He didn't even appear to have been putting in effort into that block. Ryo shook his head, dismissing the thought so he could focus on the battle. He gripped is sword to go in for another strike, but was hit himself. Sensei Byaku removed the end of the his sword from Ryo's stomach. Ryo fell on knees gripping his stomach.

"If an eagle isn't watching the fish, he's not going to get one,"Sensei Byaku replied, getting ready for the next round.

Ryo used the sword as a support to get up. He felt woosy, but managed to get back into his stance. There was a silence before Ryo finally ran forward. He decided to slash downwards again, but planned to stop in the middle of the slash and turn it into a sideways one. Before he could do so though, Sensei Byaku brought up his sword, blocking Ryo. They stood there sword pressed against sword for a few seconds until Sensei Byaku made a move. He turn his sword towards Ryo and thrusted it forward, hitting Ryo in his shoulder and knocking him back. Ryo slid one his feet back to keep balance, but Sensei Byaku had already swung and hit him in the wrist, making him drop his sword while he fell as well.

Ryo sat up, shaking his wrist some. He looked up at Sensei Byaku who appeared to be waiting for something.

"So...how would you say I did?"Ryo asked, standing up.

Sensei Byaku blinked, before replying, "Oh, Wolves are decent, but are better in packs."

Ryo blinked. The only thing he could compare that too was saying he would do better in a gang.

"Class begins in fifteen, I was told you were to practice with heavy weapons, so I shall fetch a sword for you,"Sensei Byaku replied, walking off.

Ryo sat down on the edge of the arena again.

_Ever since that thing happened with that voice...and my eye changed to this gray thing, I haven't been able to hear anything from him. I wonder...what exactly it was he did. _Ryo began thinking to himself. He went back to his locker and grabbed his cellphone, he decided he should probably call his mother, to let him know he was settled. He scrolled through his address book, pausing when he came to Dylan and Sakura. He found his home number and called. The phone rang a few times before someone picked up.

"Hello?"Ryo's mom said on the other side.

"It's Ryo, mom,"Ryo replied, sitting down, back against the lockers.

"Oh, how's the institute? Have you begun taking classes yet?"

"Yeah, they have some interesting classes, but I'm not in anything interesting yet. I got everything settled in, and I even have my own room,"Ryo replied, acting as though it was some sort of boarding school.

"What classes are you taking?"his mom asked.

"Oh, basics, like math, reading, science, history, and stuff. But P.E. has martial arts, which is fun. There's even a computer class I get to take."

"What are you doing now?"

"I have a free moment so I decided I should call."

"Thanks for calling."

"Just wanted to call you and let you know I was settled,"Ryo replied.

"Find any friends yet?"

"Ori- Mr.Ta-...se...s-,"Ryo cut off, unable to remember the fake name Orion used,"The teacher from before had lunch with me. He told me a lot about the school. Anyways I gotta go," Ryo said, wanting to end the call before he slipped up.

They finished their good byes and Ryo hung up. He went up to Sakura's number again, pausing.

_I know she probably won't answer...but _ Ryo thought, hitting the button to call. He put the phone up to his ear, hearing nothing but ringing. The voicemail came on shortly, but Ryo hung up. Class would be starting shortly so he put his cellphone back in his locker. He walked past someone who had entered in the middle of the call. Back in the main room a few people were already coming in. Ryo shook his wrist some more, a bit of pain still lingering from his defeat.

This class passed similarly to the hand-to-hand class. Because Ryo was more or less new, they did warm-ups and went over some basics of using a sword. Ryo's sword was an actual sword, but the scabbard was to remained attached at all times to make it heavy. With 10 minutes of class left, Sensei Byaku let everyone go get changed back into their normal clothes. He walked out and saw Orion, who was going to take him to the computer room.

"So, Ryo, how was your sword training?"Orion asked as they walked to the next destination.

"It went decent I suppose. I think I did better in the sword evaluation, but I can't completely understand Sensei Byaku yet,"Ryo replied, rubbing the back of his head.

"No worries, by the time he's done with ya, you'll be able to fight instead of hacking away with that sword of yours."

"Does it really look like I just hack away?"Ryo asked, feeling insulted.

"Want me to bring up a few instances?"Orion asked, picking on Ryo.

Ryo sighed. "That's okay."

They came up to the wall where Orion put his hand on it. The wall lit up like before and they walked though a door that appeared.

"Why is it like that anyways?"Ryo asked, walking in.

"If anyone ever decides to come check this place out, I keep the hacker rooms hidden. The other rooms, which can be passed off as a normal institute remains open,"Code answered, turning around in his seat.

"Code,"Ryo replied in a surprised manner, even though he already knew Code was going to be there.

"Take him to his computer,"Code ordered, rapidly hitting keys on the huge central computer.

Ryo walked over to a computer that had a metal engraving of his name screwed above the moniter. The computer appeared to actually be built into the wall.

"Code, you never cease to amaze me. It's hard to believe everything happened as you said. And we have Ryo in our hands,"some one replied.

"Remember the rules,"Code replied to whoever said it,"We don't speak unless it's needed when it comes to plans."

Ryo turned around and looked at Code suspicously. Orion was standing nearby, his hand covering his face in a disappointed fashion.

"I suppose there's no hiding it anymore, Ryo..."Code finally said, looking over.

"What's going on?"Ryo asked.

"The truth is I wanted Orion to be discovered. Skyld and AnakinseZ were becoming role models to you. The only way I could get my hands on you was to force you into choosing sides. We knew Skyld and the others wouldn't be accepting of hackers and as a result would begin to trust you less after I had Orion reveal himself. I'd be able to get you then. After it was finalized, we went to work restoring the situation."

Ryo closed his eyes. He was more or less already with Code, he didn't have any hard feelings towards either CC Corp or Code. Even if the situation was set up, he decided to go with Code after Sakura and the others were injured. He didn't think it was possible at first, but he was now more determined to accomplish his own objective.

"It doesn't matter,"Ryo replied, remembering his own objective,"It's true that I'm not pleased with what you've done, but it's also true that you're helping me with my own objective. Even if your goal is different...CC Corp's goal is different, and my own goal is different the end result is the same, right? I want to get stronger, defeat the AIs, and avenge all the pain my friends have suffered. CC Corp seeks to defeat the AIs to restore order to their game. And you just want to know everything that's going on for your own reasons..."Ryo finished, putting on his headset.

Code smirked.

"Very well, Ryo, you have my thanks. Let's work together to achieve both of our objectives,"Code replied, returning to his gigantic computer.

Orion was wide-eyed.

"I can't believe it. Ryo managed to inspire Code. The whole time I've been here...I've never seen him get worked up over anything. Ryo...you are one impressive person,"Orion replied, low enough so Ryo wouldn't hear it himself.

The whole room had suddenly been filled the feeling of drive and moral. Ryo entered his password and joined "The World" for the first time since he had come here.

Coinchii appeared in Mac Anu. He looked around for Orion, but instead found an archer.

"It's Orai, but my name in here is Shot,"the archer replied.

He had on dark blue pants which disappeared beneath his leather boots. He had a quiver made of similar material on his back. The strap went around the long-sleeve, dark blue shirt that disappeared behind what looked more like guantlets than gloves. His eyes and hair remained the same color as in real life, but in "The World" it didn't really look out of place.

Orion appeared and the party was formed.

"By the way, Or-...Shot I've never seen an archer class before, was it hacked?"Coinchii asked, as they warped into the Lambda server.

"It's a relatively new class. Odds are you won't see a high level one for awhile,"Orion answered.

"Lambda Burning Valued Solitary Statue,"Shot read out.

The three disappeared into the golden rings.

"This is...what is this?"Code said aloud, looking at the data on the computer of someone from the data stage.

"I'm not sure. As I'm sure you can see...they're brainwaves, but there appears to be two kinds."

"By the looks of the data from when he just put his helmet on you can faintly see a second one, but after logging in it's a lot more apparent. Almost as though the two brainwaves are trying to get in sync with eachother,"Code said aloud in thought.

"Might this have something to do with Ryo's eyes?"

"I don't see where there could be a connection, but we can't prove there isn't one since his left eye did change. Byaku also reported his eyes both changed to that gray with red streaks form in the hand-to-hand combat evaluation. It's best to keep watch for anything connecting his eyes with this,"Code said to the grunt. He went back up to his computer. "Everyone, if anything odd happens, or any wierd changes occur, no matter how matter how small let me know. If I'm busy record it and I'll get to it,"Code ordered, sitting back at his computer.

"Yes, sir!"the data phases replied in unison.

Shot release the string sending another arrow flying into the enemy's head. Coinchii slashed at the large half-human, half-crab monster twice, before Orion jumped up finishing it off by thrusting his spear into the monster's forehead.

It fell to the ground gray, but blew away in dust shortly afterwards. Orion and Shot stopped for a second causing Coinchii to wonder what was going on. They began moving again and went down into the next floor. As they walked into the next room the iron doors slammed down and the shining portal disappeared, leaving a treasure chest. The three paused and the doors didn't go back up.

"It's a Fake Chest, isn't it?"Coinchii asked, getting his sword ready.

"Has to be,"Orion replied, slowly walking forward.

After being fooled the first time Coinchii had begun pausing before running up to portals that left only chests. The two got within five feet of it and let Shot shoot at it. The Fake Chest was no different from the previous chest monster, Mimic, except the fact Fake Chest was stronger. The arrow hit dead on against the Fake Chest, but bounced back, not managing to pierce it's metal body. It jumped up and turned towards Orion at first, probably because Orion was the strongest, and leaped forward to attack. Orion brought his spear up to dodge, but it proved to be pointless because Coinchii had managed to move fast enough to knock it away.

Orion looked forward in awe, the gray eye looked as though it was on fire with Ryo's motivation. Orion finally admitted it. Before he didn't see the big deal in Ryo, or the big deal about "The World", under Code's orders he did as he was told, but he at last finally figured it out. The 'something' about Ryo that made him so interesting, and how "The World" was more than just a game with a problem. "The World" was a game where the real world could be reflected inside at the whim of the user.

Orion lowered his spear and looked onward as Ryo knocked back an attack. He followed up with an attack of his own. The Fake Chest flew against a wall and blew instantly into dust.

"Ryo...,"Orion breathed,"There's something in you...something that will probably change your life more than just this game...more than just this incident." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, but in reality it felt as though for the first time he had truely opened his eyes to this situation.

"Hurry up, Orion, we can't waste this adrenaline,"Shot implied, running past him.

_The eye sees more than we can recognize and is more than we think it is, once we finally recognize it, it gives you the feeling of completely control_ Orion thought running with the two as they entered the next room.


	21. Chapter 22:Forgotten Voice

"Carry the two...divide both sides by that...and it should be this,"Ryo said aloud, doing some of the worksheets.

Ryo had to get ready for the tests that would decide his grades for the next week. The work itself was pretty simple, he figured the grades would be decent in the least. He put aside the math and began working on history. Tomorrow would mark the end of the first week Ryo had been working under Code. The training had proven to be useful, he had a better grasp for basics when it came to martial arts. His swordsmanship had improved rapidly, at least he believed so. Things were more or less falling into place just fine, Orion managed to get laptop for Ryo to check his e-mail with. As far as the "The World" went, Shot, Coinchii, and Orion made a good team. Coinchii not only managed to catch up to Gyuni and Cuoka's level but managed to pass theirs. Unfortunatly he didn't as much free time with them as he used to.

Putting the weekly tests aside Ryo had been told earlier that day that the preperations for the last section of his training was almost complete. The weekends were still free days for Ryo, he was allowed to take a break from training and was allowed to play "The World" at his liesure, although they still would keep track of data. The AIs went into hiding last Ryo heard of. Since that incident where Coinchii and Mohi were kidnapped and the AIs' base was discovered they hadn't been seen.

Ryo yawned, and put down the worksheet for history, he felt like taking a break for now. Someone knocked on his door as he was putting away the work. He opened it to find Data and Code.

"Hey, what's up?"Ryo asked casually.

"We have news concerning the AIs, Code wants you to see it also,"Data answered.

"What kind of news?"Ryo asked, walking with the two to the computer room.

"Meh, he didn't say anything specific, but in his tone it sounded like it wasn't either bad or good,"Orion answered, walking with his hands in his pockets.

"He works on weekends also?"Ryo asked as they walked into the elevator.

"He never stops working. In fact it's rare to catch him sleep,"Orion replied, making it sound mysterious.

"I doubt he's an insomniac though, he doesn't really have any traces of insomnia,"Data followed up with.

They exited the elevator and continued walking. Ryo let out another yawn, he had been studying since late last night and was running on little sleep.

"Now that I think about it, since that incident Code really hasn't said anything about the AIs' base. Wouldn't you think this might have some relation?"Data asked.

"We'll figure out when we get there, I suppose,"Orion replied casually, shrugging.

Orion put his hand on the wall, revealing the doorway. The three walked in, finding Code sitting indian style in his chair.

"Grab a seat, this will probably be lengthy,"Code replied, without looking over.

The three did so.

"As we all know 10 days ago we stumbled upon a remarkable discovery for us. It was the day where we finally found the AIs' hideout due to the fact Coinchii and Mohi were kidnapped. I recorded the data from that day, but later on when I went back to check into their location, it was gone,"Code began.

"Gone? Like the AIs got rid of it?"Ryo asked.

"Well, more like it appeared as though it never existed. When I went back through the data to see if I made any mistakes in the access point I found I didn't make any from the data at that time. This meant one of two things, either the data itself was removed by someone or something or that the data itself moves. Knowing this I began to run a series of test. By the looks of the data as I'm sure you all will agree,"Code said, turning on an image of the AIs' main area,"The place looks like a damaged Mac Anu, mixed with a damaged Dun Lorieg, and with the temporary theta server thrown in. Also player characters seemed to be walking around as some form of a city population. I looked into them and it turned to be old deleted characters and deleted accounts. I'm sure you can three can decide what this means?"

"The AIs made a base in a constantly moving garbage truck for "The World","Orion replied, staring at the image on Code's monitor.

"Exactly what I figured, not that it's hard to come to the conclusion. I decided set up a 'fake server' in order to find a way to track where it was. I started off with a few objects, but there wasn't much of a trail to follow. Afterwards I cloned Coinchii's character from the time after he got out of their the first time. I used this clone so it would act as a player character, making it easier to follow. This time it ended up being successful. It turned out that, yes, the 'garbage truck', as Orion put it, did infact change location. After finding it through the cloned character I did a bit more research into the trash theory. The objects I had previously deleted, including the clone, turned up in that place."

"That's nice and all, but did you find out anything relating to the AIs?"Ryo asked, trying to be polite, but not really caring about the trash heap their base was in.

"I'm getting there now. As I've said before, when trying to scan the AIs something in it corrupts computers, because of this I couldn't directly look into the AIs. However, I have come to the theory that these AIs, might be some form of the remnants left behind by the incident a few years back. This being said, we need to get the alliance with CC Corp going as soon as possible. Skyld and AnakinseZ have information. Previously I didn't plan on making use of them, but in light of this new evidence, I see no way around it. In future negotiations, Ryo, I would like you to accompany the team I assign to it."

"Like I would refuse that, I've been wanting to get on good grounds with them for awhile, but there have been too many complications,"Ryo answered, half sullenly, half sarcastically.

"That's all I wanted to share as far as that goes. On to the other matter. Ryo, your PK character, Oblivion, is now ready for your use."

"Oblivion?"Ryo replied, dumbfounded.

Code handed him a packet of papers.

"As I just said, your PK character. This is the last stage of the training you'll be doing daily here. The concept is simple. Going out to kill people makes it so you get hunted. We don't want that. Becoming a PKK itself also requires more effort than we need. We've decided to go with something simple. Through the use of a the bulletin board system I'll have the people who work for me and have accounts post up rumors about your character. This will naturally attract people through curiosity. After you get used to using your character we'll post on the BBS a time and map to challenge you. The winner will be given a prize. For safety reasons, though, we made this character completely legit. This way we'll be able to attract a large variety of people who want to challenge you."

"And in doing so it's not really PKing or PKKing, but dueling. Meanwhile I'm training for fights against AIs. It doesn't seem like a bad idea,"Ryo replied.

"Lastly, report later, Ryo. You're going to try out Oblivion in some dungeons. That's all for now,"Code said, dismissing the three.

Orion and Ryo parted ways and began walking down the hall towards nothing in particular.

"What's a Scythe Wielder?"Ryo asked looking through the papers.

"Oh, that class,"Orion replied.

"What's that class?"Ryo replied with a sweatdrop.

"It's an old class, rarely used."

"But the stats look good, his speed, strength, and defense are incredible,"Ryo replied looking at the stats of Oblivion.

"Yeah, but even with that speed the scythe causes a character's speed to drop drastically."

"What's wrong with the scythe?"

"Is there a picture?"Orion asked, looking over at the papers.

Ryo flipped through a few pages and saw Oblivion's appearance. Everything he had on was black, the metal armor that made up his pants, the chainmail he wore, the metal boots, and the spiked bracers on the character. The hair came down to his waist in the back and in the front he had bangs that dropped to the same elevation as his mouth. The skin color was incredibly pale, almost pure white.

"Ah, in that picture,"Orion said, pointing to the a picture in the bottom corner of the page

Ryo looked over the scythe's were rediculously large, the handle was easily two or three feet longer than Oblivion himself, and on top of that it was made of some dark metal. The blade of the scythe was probably the length of the character. On the blade was a yellow streak going along the center.

"I see, anyone would come to the conclusion that a weapon that big would kill the character's speed,"Ryo muttered.

"The scythe is probably the worst type of weapon ever created in "The World". It's powerful, but because of its problems it's really rare to find a Scythe Wielder, despite it being an old class.

"Code said I was going to try the character in some dungeons later, right?"Ryo asked, suddenly going wide-eyed.

"Yeah, why?"

"I better get some studying done, this means that I have less time to study test I have to take later."

Orion scratched the back of his head, and let Ryo go.

"Glad I'm not in school,"Orion muttered to himself, walking off.

Ryo closed the door and went back over to his work from earlier. He tried to continue where he left off, but the curiosity about the new character distracted him. After a sigh, he closed the book and returned to the paper about Oblivion.

_Hey, are you there, voice? _Ryo asked, although he already knew what to expect. He waited for a moment, but as expected nothing came. Even though the voice was with him against his will, he had to admit he missed having the voice in his head.

"If I recall the voice did say he was from "The World"...I wonder what he meant by that exactly,"Ryo thought to himself.

_ I wonder what Skyld and AnakinseZ are up to as well. It's been awhile since I've seen either of them. Suichi hasn't called since Tuesday..._ Ryo began to think. Since coming with Code he had noticed improvements in his fighting, but everyone else was becoming more distant it seemed. Sakura and the others were still in the hospital. Looking back on everything Ryo realized how much of wreck they had been up until now. Instead of going after the AIs like they should have they were sitting idle and allowing the AIs to make their moves first. The only thing they could really call progress wasn't even accomplished by themselves, but by the AIs doing as they were supposed to.

"We'll have to start taking the initiative in order to accomplish anything at this rate. I'm putting my faith in you, Code,"Ryo said aloud to himself.

His stomach growled afterwards so he decided to get lunch before reporting to the computer room. Once in he was instructed to log on to Oblivion for the first time.

"Is Orion coming?"Oblivion asked.

"Just give him a moment,"Code's voice answered into the headset.

Oblivion sat down against the wall of Mac Anu, behind the Chaos Gate. Golden rings appeared and Orion ran over.

"For the record, I'm not going to be fighting, I'm just here to watch per orders,"Orion said, giving Oblivion an advanced warning.

The two formed a party.

"Hmm..what sounds good?...Hidden...Forbidden?...Hmm..Holy ground?"Oblivion answered slowley.

As he finished golden rings surrounded them and they were off to the map. As the rings disappeared they found themselves on the end of a stone walkway.

"Huh, what kind of dungeon is this?"Oblivion asked, walking over to the miniature, stone wall.

They appeared to be in the middle of large dried out lake.

"For a randomly chosen area, this map is wierd,"Orion replied, looking down the pathway at a chapel-like structure.

"Let's try going in and see what the dungeon is like,"Oblivion suggested, leading the way.

The two slipped into the large door which was cracked open. The inside looked like an old church as well, the seats were demolished for the most part, but the interesting thing was the statue at the back end of the structure. It was a young boy kneeling on the ground and behind him was a robed figure, carrying a scythe, probably the Grim Reaper. He walked up to a pedestal in front of the statue.

"The one who is of this world, but not of this world, is now home. The twilight leads to both salvation and destruction. Foolishly, but without a choice this child of the world follows the twilight, for the sun has to rise the next day," Orion said, reading it aloud.

"I wonder it means,"Oblivion replied, walking up to a fence that blocked off the statue.

Oblivion grunted and fell to the ground, holding his head.

"Code! Look at this!"someone from the data phase said quickly.

Code jumped up and ran over to the computer.

"The two brain waves, are falling into line!"Code replied, wide-eyed.

"No, the secondary waves are starting to take over!"the data phase replied.

"Someone, get video recordings of whats happening on Oblivion's face!"Code ordered.

"Ryo, Ryo!"Orion replied, shaking Oblivion.

Oblivion let out a screech, his blue eye turned gray with the red streak.

"His right eye changed to the same kind as the left one when the secondary waves took over,"Code replied.

He looked over at Ryo's body which was shivering for a brief moment, but returned to normal. Oblivion began moving in "The World", but Ryo's hands in the real world weren't doing anything with the controller.

"What is this..."Code said slowly to himself.

"Ugh,"Oblivion said, pulling himself up on the fence.

"Whew, you're okay Ryo,"Orion said.

"This place...must have triggered my awakening,"Oblivion replied, looking up at the statue fiercly.

He then looked down at his character as though it was first time seeing it.

"Are you okay?"Orion asked, offering him a hand.

Oblivion ignored him and jumped over the fence walking up to the statue. He suddenly appeared angry and in a puff of black smoke the scythe appeared in his hands. He brought the scythe up and dropped the pointed end down into the Grim Reaper, breaking it in half. He then used the top side of the blade to cut the child in half.

"What are you doing, Ryo!?"Orion asked, getting aggrevated now.

"I'm not Ryo,"Oblivion replied, making the scythe disappear in another puff of black smoke.

"Orion, be careful, the secondary brainwaves I told you about have switched and are the primary waves now,"Code said to Orion.

"So this is like another Ryo,"Orion replied, confused for the first time in awhile.

"Could it be that the statue was referring to now, instead of back then?"Oblivion asked himself, grabbing a chunk of stone from one of the statue's debris.

"Record all the data that takes place from now until he returns normal,"Code ordered to the data phases.

"There's no way I'm going to let Ryo die,"Oblivion replied, dropping the stone.

He put his hands on the broken statue about to swear oath, but it suddenly began turn into a white light. He took a few steps back and watched as the figure began to change. The statue now appeared as a two boys, one with a + shaped cracked along the face leaving ominous shadow and the other with an odd light shining from it. Oblivion looked back at the pedestal and ran over, as the rainbow stream of light faded.

"A child of this world, a child from no world, a child of another world. Admist one lurks freedom, admists another lurks death, admists the last lurks shadows. The twilight is no longer a key for there is no longer day or night,"Oblivion slowly read.

"Code, did you get that passage?"Orion asked.

"That and everything else going on in that map,"Code replied into Orion's headset.

"What are you two doing?"someone suddenly said walking into the door.

Oblivion and Orion looked over to find Momiri, Venus, Skyld, and AnakinseZ.

"Hey, even I don't know what's going on,"Orion replied.

"You guys,"Oblivion replied.

"I know that long arm, he's a hacker, but he's yet to do anything bad. I don't completely trust him though,"Skyld replied, refering to Orion.

"By the looks of the IP, this Scythe Wielder would have to be Coinchii...or someone at his house,"Venus answered, hitting some things on her clipboard.

"Coinchii is still with those hackers,"Skyld said sullenly.

"These hackers are working to save "The World","Oblivion replied.

"Coinchii, we have been monitoring what they do, and they have cooperated in fighting off the AIs in your absence, it's likely we would be able to work together, but the hacker behind Orion is Code, so we have to be careful,"Momiri explained.

Orion looked over at Oblivion's eyes. They were still gray and red, which meant he still wasn't back to normal.

"This is bad,"Orion complained to himself.

"Hello?"Code's voice said aloud throughout the room.

"Who's voice is that?"AnakinseZ asked, looking around.

"Unfortunatly, I would've liked to meet under better circumstances, but this is Code. Ryo...Coinchii...or Oblivion if you prefer...something odd is happening to him, perhaps later we can discuss something some form alliance, but for now we need to return him to normal."

"I'm just fine, Ryo will return to normal in time, but for now there's something I have to do,"Oblivion replied, looking at the roof.

"Now that I think about it..."Skyld said slowly.

The other three looked over.

"Did you notice something?"Venus asked.

"It should be impossible, but this voice sounds nothing like Ryo's. In fact it sounds like someone we all know..."Skyld said, with a very grave face.

"Huh, now that you mention it...it couldn't be..."AnakinseZ forced out, coming to some form of realization

"You guys know something?"Orion asked walking over.

Oblivion grinned.

"Even I can't completely explain it, so don't bother asking, but yeah, it's me,"Oblivion replied.

Skyld and AnakinseZ gasped. Venus went wide-eyed and dropped the clipboard. Momiri stared straight at him, her face looking as though it was in shock. Skyld went to take a step forward, but it was as though something was holding him down.

"What is it?"Orion asked seriously, looking over at the four.

Oblivion's eye suddenly returned back to normal and some odd sound was made as he fell to the ground.

"Code, Ryo just threw up,"someone said.

Code jumped out of his seat and ran over to Ryo. His head was laying on the keyboard and in front of the chair was the a mutilated form of whatever he had for lunch. Code quickly took the controller and logged out of "The World" and tore the headset off Ryo's head. Orion quickly ran over, still logged in "The World". He pulled Ryo away from the computer and laid him out on the floor. Orion began checking for signs to diagnose what happened to Ryo.

"It seems as if it's nothing more than sleep, but so suddenly after something like happening,"Orion said, worried.

"Someone, get on Orion's character now, see if you can find out what those four know!"Code shouted fiercely, before returning to Ryo,"Even if it turns out just to be nothing more than sleep let's get him to our clinic."

"Right," Orion said, picking up Ryo gently.

"Eh, hello?"Orion's character in "The World" replied, in a small female tone.

Someone from one of the data phases must've taken over Orion's character.

Orion looked on as the four remained the same as when they had connected whatever knowledge that led them into shock. He/she walked over and slapped Skyld in the face, causing him to wake up.

"You four, I need to know what happened, it might be important for Code!"Orion shouted, in a out of character girly voice.

"No...it was supposed to be in our past...we should be happy he's back, but with these AIs..."Skyld slowly answered.

"That was J-"Venus began.

"No!..."AnakinseZ suddenly said, cutting her off.

"Why can't we accept it?"Venus replied sullenly.

"Because...the person behind that character isn't him, yet the character is, even if it was him, wouldn't he be no more than old data?"Skyld answered.

Momiri suddenly let out a sob and warped away, followed by quickly by Venus who was probably able to consul her in real life. AnakinseZ fell to his knees.

"Would...he really want to live as data?"AnakinseZ asked, holding himself up on by hands.

"I...I need to think,"Skyld replied, logging out.

"Oh, hopefully Code can use this data,"Orion replied nervously, logging out.

"Code, I know you're worried about Ryo, but there isn't much to do for him besides let him rest, wouldn't it be best if you went over the information you just gathered?"Data suggested, leaning against the wall by Ryo's clinic bed.

Code look up at Data, then back down at Ryo. He sighed and got up, walking out.

"I want to know what happened. Everything from an outward appearance would suggest a mental illness..."Orion replied.

"Yeah, but there was the whole thing about two different kind of brainwaves in his head. Usually a chemical imbalance that would typically cause that sort of behavior would just leave unbalanced brainwaves,"Data responded.

"And the way he acted...it was really as though it was another person within his character."

"Is it true about his eyes?"Data asked.

"Yeah, when the normally secondary type of brainwaves took the place as the primary type his right eye became gray with red streaks. When we first met him his eyes were both blue, but by the time he joined us his left eye changed, and stays changed."

"Eyes are connected straight to the brain...there's a saying that when you look into one's eyes, you're looking into their soul, but I could only imagine whats going on in Ryo,"Data comented.

Ryo suddenly groaned and his eyes cracked open, both of their respective normal color.

"What happened?"he said, drearily.

"You don't remember?"Orion asked, pushing a glass of water towards him.

Ryo took a drink to get rid of the puke taste lingering in his mouth.

"The last thing I remember is walking up to that fence on that map, after that I found myself waking up just now,"Ryo replied, holding his head.

"I'll go see if I can offer Code any help, this defies anything logical,"Data replied, walking out.

"When did I get in here?"Ryo asked, now fully awake and looking around, but with a bad headache.

"I'd like to say 'don't worry about it', but I honestly don't know myself. Let's wait and see if Code discovers anything,"Orion replied, smiling out of relief.

"Why am I thinking about Skyld and AnakinseZ?"Ryo asked, putting down the cup.

"Huh, what exactly are you thinking about?"

"I'm not sure, something familiar about them. It's like something I should know, but don't know,"Ryo answered.

"Well whatever it is, as long as you're fine don't worry about it,"Orion replied, standing up, offering Ryo a hand.

Ryo, still not completely sure to the situation took Orion's hand...


	22. Chapter 23:Sakura

"Dammit,"Oblivion grunted, getting back up.

The Scythe Wielder's class turned out to be as difficult as everyone said, which Oblivion was learning now. He managed to get another attack, killing a monster. Shot used a Healing Potion on him to recover his lost hitpoints. Oblivion held his scythe straight out in front of him and it disappeared in a puff of black smoke. It was one of the thing about Scythe Wielders that made it interesting, because of the size of the scythes the weapon would disappear or appear at the user's command instead of being carried around.

"At this rate, Oblivion won't be ready to fight anything, let alone players,"Shot commented.

"This class is really hard,"Oblivion whined.

"Hey look here comes another monster,"Orion warned.

A monster resembling a heavy axeman had somehow managed to sneak up on the three. If it wasn't for the fact the head was a skull the monster probably would've been mistakened for a real player.

The monster brought his axe straight up, getting to right to slam it down on Oblivion, but out of instinct from combat training, Oblivion had already turned around and delivered a right-handed punch into the monster's stomach. The monster toppled back and fell over. Oblivion quickly follow up by delivering another fisticuff blow into it's face. He paused, noticing he was still doing a lot of damage, without the scythe in hand, but returned to the fight. After summoning his scythe he delivered a final blow and began chuckling.

"I believe we all just realized a way to effectively use the Scythe Wielder class,"Shot said.

"Yeah, that display was pretty useful, it appears even without the scythe in hand, the player can do decent damage through fisticuffs,"Orion followed.

"Then when the opportunity is right, finish him with the scythe,"Oblivion finished, grinning.

"Alright you three, that's enough for now, Ryo has a guest,"Code suddenly said into their headsets.

Oblivion returned the party to the main town where they logged off

"Looks like she's here,"Orion said to Orai grinning.

Orai merely glanced over at Orion, before getting up and walking away.

"She?"Ryo asked, putting his headset away.

He got up and walked out of the computer room, heading towards the entrance of the institute. Ryo was feeling a lot better than yesterday after the incident where he first used Oblivion. It was odd, however, that no one was able to give him an answer as to what exactly happened. Everyone either said they didn't know or wouldn't know how to explain. Code was supposedly looking into it, whatever 'it' was. Ryo walked down the stairs to the first floor and went into the main lobby.

"Ryo-kun!"Sakura's voice suddenly cried out, jumping onto Ryo for a hug.

He was caught offguard a bit, but didn't mind. This meant everyone must have been doing better. At first he went to push Sakura off, but instead ended up wrapping his arms her back. It actually felt good, he hated to admit. Sakura decided to take advantage of the situation and kissed Ryo quickly, before jumping back.

"You're finally better,"Ryo said, smiling, and going to sit down.

"This should prove to be amusing,"Orion whispered to himself, spying from around a corner.

"It was a pain finding you, you were a complete mess after the fight with the AIs,"Sakura said, in a scolding manner.

"Sorry,"Ryo replied, feeling awkward at her change in attitude.

She sighed afterwards, and returned to her normal happy attitude.

"Anyways, after I recovered, I went to your house, but your mom said you went to some gifted school thing. It didn't help me at all, so I went to Suichi, he explained everything for me, so I contacted Code-sama and he informed me of everything that happened and allowed me to come here,"Sakura explained.

"You're joining the institute also?"Ryo asked, wide-eyed.

"I'm still kind of thinking,"she replied, embaressed.

"I really am glad you guys are better,"Ryo said again.

"I have one question though,"Sakura said, pushing her face towards Ryo's, causing him to lean back some.

"Yeah?"

"The first time, when you were injured, your attitude didn't change. How come when we got injured you suddenly changed?"Sakura asked, pushing her face closer, with a half-sullen, half-serious expression on her face.

Ryo blushed.

"It's...I..."he began.

Sakura pushed her face closer causing Ryo to blush even more. He forced a gulp.

"You?"Sakura asked.

"I...la-...,"Ryo began, but couldn't manage to say it.

"Just say it, Ryo!"Orion suddenly shouted from around the corner.

"Huh?"Ryo asked.

The two then lost balance, Ryo ended up falling on the floor and Sakura fell on Ryo. Ryo moaned, then looked up, which was similar to looking back because of his position.

"Who's there?"Ryo asked, with a sweatdrop.

Orion walked around, scratching the back of his head.

"Guess I said that a bit too loud,"he replied.

"Orion-san,"Sakura responded looking over, still laying on top of Ryo.

"Bah, Sakura, let's go to my room, maybe we'll have more privacy then,"Ryo replied, aggrevated.

Sakura finally got up, which allowed Ryo to do so as well. The two walked over to an elevator and went to the third floor.

"Awww, that didn't go as planned,"Orion muttered to himself.

"Normally I wouldn't resort to such measures, but I have camera's in every room. While invading his privacy is unethical even I have to admit, this is too amusing to pass up,"Code suddenly replied, coming out from behind the empty front desk.

"I'm sure Ryo won't mind,"Orion said, knowing what he stated was an obvious lie.

"Shall we?"Code asked, walking away.

"We shall,"Orion answered, following.

"Perhaps Orion acts too much like an older brother,"Ryo replied, opening the door to his room for Sakura.

She ran in and jumped on the bed.

"It's so comfortable,"she said excitedly, rolling around.

"Yeah, Code treat's his people good I have to admit,"Ryo responded, sitting on the couch, turning on the TV for background noise.

"Comfortable rooms, Ryo, no parents, I may take up Code's offer after all,"Sakura replied with a cat-like grin.

"I should've seen that coming,"Ryo replied with a sweatdrop.

"So what were you going to say before?"Sakura asked, grinning because she probably knew already.

"Oh,"Ryo said, blushing and looking to the side.

"I was just going to, umm, suggest you stay here,"Ryo suddenly blurted out.

"Was that really all?"she asked, rolling on her back, looking up at him.

"Is there supposed to be more?"Ryo asked, beginning to sweat.

"Considering that wouldn't have answered the question I asked, yeah,"Sakura replied, with a sweatdrop.

Ryo chuckled nervously.

"What was the question?"Ryo asked.

Sakura sighed, looking depressed.

"Fine,"he responded

Sakura, looked back up, with an unexpecting look.

"The truth is, before this year, I really couldn't stand you, then as you made your way into our group I found you endurable,"Ryo began, beat red from blushing. "As we began playing "The World" more and hanging out more in real life, I accepted you as a friend, which normally I wouldn't have even thought about."

"He really does suck at confessions,"Code commented, looking at a monitor with Ryo's room on it.

"You think so? I think the build up is decent, even though it's obvious where he's heading,"Orion answered.

"You can tell by Sakura's face she knows whats coming,"Code replied.

"Yeah, but just wait until it finally gets said. It'll be like unlocking a door."

"Even though at times you're assertive and take my stuff, or do things you shouldn't do, I've gotten used to it in time. And after the incident 12 or so days ago, I finally came to realize it."

Sakura's catlike grin, by this point had turned into normal expression. There was probably little expectation that Ryo would've gotten this far and the thought of him finally saying the words she longed to hear caused her to get sucked into his words.

"The suspence is killing meeeee,"Orion pouted, his face almost touching the monitor.

"Code, we just di-"

"Shut the fuck up, report later,"Code quickly replied in a harsh way to the person.

"Yes...sir,"he replied, wide-eyed.

He closed the door and left.

"It's like you said, you know what's going to happen, but the build up really does bug you,"Code replied, staring intently at the monitor.

Ryo took a deep breath, about to speak what he had been trying to deny this whole time. Sakura had a hard grip on the blanket as though the anticipation was like several knives slowly cutting her up.

"Sakura..."Ryo said.

"This is it,"Orion said, now pushing his face against the monitor.

"I..."Ryo said heavily.

Code shoved Orion's face back so he could see.

"I have to..."

"Say it,"Code mouthed.

"finally admit..."

"Say it,"Orion barked, teeth clinched.

"That Sakura,..."

_He's gonna say it _Sakura thought to herself

"I..."

_It's finally time to say it _Ryo thought to himself.

"l-...la-...loh-..."Ryo tried forcing out.

"No!"Code and Orion shouted in unison.

_In the end, he couldn't bring himself say it _ Sakura thought to her self, causing her to become depressed.

_Ín the end...am I really unable to say it? _Ryo thought, looking at himself pitifully.

Ryo's eye suddenly to gray with red streaks marking his odd transformation again.

"No..I want to help, but it isn't going to work unless he says it,"Ryo mouthed to himself.

"Ryo?"Sakura asked, her eyes starting to water.

_Ugh, should I say it for him? Is that why I'm here now? Dammit, Ryo be a man and say it yourself! _he thought to himself.

Then just as suddenly as it changed, his eye returned to it's blue state.

"I love you, Sakura,"he forced out, wide eyed, blushing, relieved, burdenless.

"YES!"Code and Orion shouted in unison, slamming their hands down on the desk.

It was as though the weight on Ryo's confession had been upon everyone's shoulders. The feeling of relief soon flooded the two, and even though they didn't do anything even they were left with an accomplished feeling.

_He said it!_ Sakura thought to herself, she grinned, although still on the borderline of crying.

_Finally... _Ryo thought.

Sakura quickly jumped over to Ryo grabbing him in a hug as she landed in the couch.

"Ryo,"she replied slowly.

Ryo felt weightless for that moment, it felt as though he would float away if she wasn't on him. He put his arms around her, pulling her up. He lowered his face towards. Sakura closed her eyes ready for what was next. For the first time, with pure feeling, the two pairs of lips pressed against eachother. Ryo slowly closed his eyes as the two laid there embraced in hug and kiss.

Orion opened his arms for a hug, the feelings of the two spreading out from just their moment.

"No, I'm not that overjoyed,"Code replied with a sweatdrop, he turned off the monitor.

"Yeah, we probably should leave them alone,"Orion said, feeling warm and fuzzy inside.

The two walked out of the surveillance room.

"See I was right about the door being unlocked,"Orion said grinning.

"Humans are an odd race. Even though it was obvious what was coming, until he finally said those words, it was like someone put us in a box and dropped us into the ocean. The pressure and trapped feeling everywhere around with no escape,"Code replied.

"I suppose this just goes to show you Code. You can observe, and research, study, experiment, but sometimes unless you're actually part of something or unless you've experienced it before you can't truly learn it,"Orion replied.

The two began to walk forward, but paused in mid-step.

"We said we would respect his privacy,"Orion said, closing his eyes.

There was a silence. The two walked backwards, back into the room and set down.

"Just one more minute,"Code said, flipping the monitor back on.

The moment appeared to be overwhelming to the two. They seemed to have drowned in the overflowing emotions, causing the two to drift off to sleep. At least for the moment.

Then either later or the next day, Ryo's eyes slowly opened up. He whiped his eyes and looked down, going wide-eyed. For the moment he almost forgot what happened. He awoke to his arms around Sakura, her arms around him, and her face pushed against his chest. But the moment soon returned to his memory.

He picked Sakura up, carrying her over to the bed, where he tucked her in. All of a sudden her phone went off, so he grabbed it from the nightstand next to his bed. He accepted the call.

"Sakura?"the person on the other line asked.

"Huh?"Ryo asked looking at the number.

It was her dad.

"Oh, Mr.Ominari, this is Ryo."

"Ah, Ryo, so I take it Sakura is still at the institute?"he asked.

Ryo figured they pulled the same story with Sakura's parents as they did with Ryo's.

"Yeah, she got a bit tired so she's taking a nap now,"Ryo answered, sitting back on the couch, looking over at her.

She appeared so innocent when sleeping it's hard to believe it was the same person.

"She said she wanted to check it out before deciding whether or not she would join the institute, has she come to a decision yet?"Mr. Ominari, asked.

"She hasn't said anything to me yet. Perhaps she'll decide when she wakes up."

"Alright when she wakes up have her call me, okay Ryo?"

"Of course, of course,"Ryo replied, yawning.

He hung up, putting her phone back on the bedside table. He decided he to keep busy so he grabbed a laptop Orion had managed to get him and checked his e-mail.

He had a few, one from Cuoka, one from Gyuni, one from Suichi and Dylan, an Ace e-mail, and oddly enough one from Code.

Cuoka's and Gyuni's were talking about what happened to them and why they weren't on. Ryo replied, explaining he knew that much, but he was glad they were back fine.

He went to the one from Dylan and Suichi next, which more or less said that Dylan and Sakura were fine and that Sakura wanted to meet him. It was kind of late getting it, but he replied saying that it felt great knowing no one was injured anymore.

Ace's e-mail was next, this one Ryo found noteworthy, it said. "Coinchii, you're never going to believe it, I've been listening to some conversations between AnakinseZ and Skyld, they're talking about negotiations with Code soon. I heard you ended up working with him. I just wanted you to know I still had faith in ya, after all this stuff. And about the ERS, don't worry about it. Most of the time we're being sent after the AIs when you aren't around. I guess it shows that CC Corp has had faith in you too since they've been leaving you to deal to with the AIs when you're around." Ryo replied thanking Ace, and said that Code was going to have Ryo attend negotiations.

Finally he came to last e-mail sent by Code. "We have finally been able to start negotiations between us and CC Corp. I would've normally told you in person, but since I'm sure you're busy with Sakura I decided to e-mail this so you could get to it whenever it was convinient. We've both agree'd on negotiations taking place within "The World". They'll be sending Momiri, Venus, AnakinseZ, and the head of department for "The World", Azara. We'll be sending you and Orion. I'll be in contact by communicating through the remote voice means I usually use. The date of negotiations is set two days from now." Ryo punched the air as a sign of excitement, since Sakura was still asleep he had to be quiet.

"This is great, everything is working out for the better. Everyone is fine again, we're soon going to be back and working with CC Corp against the AIs, and after the negotiation we'll be able to take the offensive against the AIs,"Ryo said to himself, leaning back in on the couch.

* * *

Did you enjoy the triple chapter thing? Yeah, sorry about the filler-like chapter, but meh I figured sooner or later it would have to have to be done. Reviews, comments, critizism, suggestions, so on always welcome. The story will easily pass 30 chapters at the rate it's going. But, hey, 'least has almost caught up with my progress in the story. 


	23. Chapter 24:Negotiations

Another weekend another chapter per usual. Not much worth mentioning enjoy.

* * *

Ryo got into his computer seat, it was time for the negotiations between CC Corp and Code. It was more than obvious this was an important occasion. This meeting would be the deciding factor in what happens to the AIs. If the two parties remained seperate as they had been then the AIs would continue getting the better of both, but if the alliance went well it would mean the start of the end for the AIs.

"Remember, anyone with half a brain would expect the AIs to attack. Because of it I called in the others, CC Corp shouldn't mind,"Code said, giving out final words before they would log in. "That being said, log on now."

Ryo logged in as Coinchii.

He appeared in Mac Anu and looked around. Cuoka and Gyuni were already sitting and waiting. The others were to be logging in at any second. Orion and Shot appeared after Coinchii, followed by Demon, then the others appeared shortly after.

Coinchii sighed.

"Don't sweat it, Coinchii, the negotiations will be easy, the only difficult thing will be keeping the AIs away until everything is decided,"Orion said.

"Eh, I'm nervous of course, but the fact we have to sit there and continue talking, ignoring the presence of the AIs while everyone fights is what worries me the most,"Coinchii confessed.

"I'm sure October will be there, so it's not like it's just us seven to defend you guys,"Mohi replied.

All of a sudden they were surrounded in golden rings and appeared in a field that had nothing aside from some sort of glass dome and grass. Inside the dome there was an old victorian style table and chairs, probably the meeting point.

"You're finally here, well let's make this quick, I'm sure you know the AIs will target us,"someone suddenly said.

It was a female in shining white armor. The chest plate had two red arrows pointing at eachother. On her back was a red cape which fell to about the back of her knees. Her character had blonde hair that fell about midback and had a bit of a curl at the ends.

"That's Azara I'm guessing?"Orion muttered, so Code would hear.

"Yeah, she used to be a Game Administrator but shortly after the incident a few years back she got a big promotion,"Code replied into Orion's headset.

"Skyld, AnakinseZ!"Coinchii shouted looking over.

"Ah, Coinchii, you're part of the negotiations?"AnakinseZ asked slightly nervous.

"Yeah, I wasn't told Skyld was part of it though."  
"Oh, I'm just the mediator,"Skyld replied, rubbing the back of his head.

"Listen up! We're going to be starting now, October and the ERS, do your best to protect the glass dome, but don't risk your life, we don't need any casualties,"AnakinseZ commanded to his troops.

They all acknowledged his order in unison. Everyone who was part of the negotiations began walking in, Azara took the lead, followed by Orion and Coinchii, Skyld and AnakinseZ next, and lastly was Venus and Momiri.

"Code you there?"Azara asked, her voice sounded stern.

"But of course. I'm glad I'm now trusted enough for negotiations, you have my thanks."

_Hmm, I should probably watch what I say if it involves Code. I have to act formal too. Code seems to be acting formal even though he isn't here virtually _Coinchii thought to himself.

"Alright, let's begin,"Skyld said, standing in the middle of the hollow, circled-shaped table. "People currently in negotiations, shall be introduced by side and position. Starting with CC Corp we have its president, Azara, the Game Administrator, Momiri, the Game Administrator's assistant, Venus, and the head of October, AnakinseZ. For Code's party we have the legendary hacker himself, Code, one of his underlings, Orion, and Coinchii, the one who's presumed to be targeted by the AIs. I'm Skyld, the mediator of this negotiation."

"I'm called his underling, how degrading,"Orion whispered to Coinchii.

"The topic of this negotiation is whether or not an alliance should be created between CC Corp and Code to work against the AIs,"Skyld finished.

"If I may, I believe it would be best to start with knowledge centered around the AIs, since they're going to be the target of the alliance,"Code began.

"Yes, that would be appropriate, I haven't been in "The World" to personally experiance these attacks and my knowledge is limited to what I read in reports,"Azara continued.

All of a sudden Jade appeared in the middle of the table.

"Don't worry, this is just an image,"Code said quickly.

Coinchii sighed, drooping in his chair.

"This is the first AI we've come into contact with. Her name is Jade and as for her powers, they involve transforming into monsters. Her advantage is in the fact it doesn't have to be a monster that exists within "The World" she's capable of turning herself into new monsters. Her weakness would be in the fact that she seems only able to transform,"Orion explained.

"We first ran into her during the ERS initiation, we managed to take her, but it was difficult,"AnakinseZ added.

"Next,"Code said.

The image of Jade disappeared and an image of Aqua appeared.

"This is the second AI that we managed to discover. Aqua's powers seem to make it so that she can she control monsters, or if she chooses she can make the monsters run wild. In addition to her ability to do that she also appears to be able to strengthen monsters in the process of doing so. Her advantage is more or less both of her main powers, her weakness is that it only works on monsters. At least to our knowledge. We've yet to witness her use it on anything else,"Orion explained.

"Me and Ace first witnessed Aqua when she was disguised as a heavy axeman, err, axewoman. She tricked us into joining her as she brought us into a dungeon. At the bottom of the dungeon we first witnessed her powers. Shortly after displaying her powers she warped away leaving us there to get killed,"Coinchii explained, picking up quickly on how this first part was running.

"I managed to warp in and get both of them out of there in time though,"Momiri added.

Azara nodded. Suddenly the image of Aqua changed and Pyro appeared.

"Th-"Orion began, before hearing an explosion.

Everyone looked outside the dome and saw all of the AIs floating in the air. Some of October quickly surrounded the dome while the ones who were unable to get by the dome went after the AIs. Jade suddenly changed into some gargantuas mammoth-looking monster. Pyro then summoned three others who were strengthened by Aqua. The mammoths turned into a brighter green and began mimicing what Jade was doing. Jade was a darker green so Coinchii assumed Aqua gave control to Jade. Kiiro was in a sitting position, still floating contently watching as the players clashed with the monsters.

"We need to focus on negotiations,"Code suddenly said, making everyone return to the meeting.

"Ah, of course, how unprofessional of us,"Azara said, blushing.

"Oh, Jade, err, Pyro, as you've just witnessed Pyro has the ability to create monsters based off of existing monsters, we'll get to the combinations afterwards, but please manage for now,"Orion said, trying not to glance back at the fight going on in back.

----------

Hedrei got on the end of a spear a player was holding.

"On the count of three I want you to catapult me at the mammoth,"Hedrei ordered.

"Uh, Sir Hedrei! You sure it'll work?"he asked, hesitant.

"Of course. Three, two, one!"Hedrei shouting.

The longarm used all of his might to swing his spear in the manner a catapult would throw things. Hedrei jumped off at the peak of the arc and slashed into a mammoth's side. He struggled to pull himself on top of the mammoth, but afterwards he pulled his sword up. He looked over at Coinchii's group of friends who were busy trying to attack Jade, with the aid of Ace and some October members. Hedrei stabbed into the mammoth's back and continued fighting.

----------

Mohi pulled out his orb and held it in his left hand while he began casting.

"Ani kruz!"

The balls of darkness appeared, but were knocked back by a Darkness Tol.

"Do you have any spells that aren't darkness spells?"Ace asked, running past him and slashing a few times.

"Unfortunatly, no, I made this wavemaster a darkness specialist in order to get all of the Ani types,"Mohi grunted.

It was hard to keep track of everything going on, but from Mohi's perspective it appeared as though the sheer numbers of people convering on the monsters made a shield. No matter how strong, if confused, you probably would have trouble taking on a newborn.

----------

"Kiiro, Mammoth three is starting to lose health from the physical attackers, give it a Physical Tol,"Aqua replied, watching the madness that was the field being torn apart.

"Gotcha,"Kiiro replied.

Kiiro held her hand towards a Mammoth in a gun fashion. She played as though she pulled a trigger and the Mammoth suddenly had Physical Tol.

"The regen should allow it to recover its hitpoints,"Pyro added.

"Such a pain, they brought so many people though,"Kiiro complained.

"Because Pyro is only able to create three cloned monster version of Jade's transformations we have no means of attacking the glass dome at the moment,"Aqua replied.

"And we really can't fight well enough, the only people able to lead anything called an offense are Jade and Pyro,"Kiiro whined. "It makes things so boring."

"Just wait Ryo darling, you'll be in my arms soon again,"Pyro hummed to herself.

"Pitiful,"Kiiro muttered, wondering how Pyro could be interested in a normal human player.

----------

Serene jumped over the Mammoth's trunk and attempted an attack but missed. Someone from October dove at Serene, knocking her down so the Mammoth's tusk wouldn't take her head off.

"Thanks,"she said quickly, pushing him away and rolling to the side so the Mammoth wouldn't slam its trunk on them.

----------

"That sums up the information that is known 'til now,"Code said.

"Very well then, let's start actual negotiations now,"AnakinseZ said, looking around at the others.

"Ah, may I start?"Code asked.

"I have no objection,"Azara replied, speaking on behalf the CC Corp group.

"Aside from the fact we will be sharing information, I have an offer, if you will allow me to do so,"Code began.

"Continue,"Azara stated.

"As I've informed you about what we've come to call Deletion Zone, I feel I might be able to create a program that will allow constant access to its everchanging position, of course I'll put it in an area that will only be known to the people who require knowing it. It's one of the things I'm willing to offer along with a possible few other things,"Code said.

"What do you think, Momiri?"Azara asked, her expression hadn't appeared to change once since the meeting began, Coinchii noticed.

"It could prove helpful. According to Code the only other way to enter the Deletion Zone would be by creating something to be deleted and traced, then manually sending the people there which is tedious,"Momiri answered.

"There's your answer, we accept that offer,"Azara replied. "As for an offering on our behalf you'll be permitted access to a large percent of "The World" without worry of penelty. Orion's character will be allowed to stay as it is until the end of this catastrophe. And lastly, if Coinchii chooses to do so, he'll be allowed back into the ERS."

"Very well, we'll accept the first two, of course,"Orion replied, before turning to Coinchii.

"It's a nice offer, but I'm fine, even though you're given special powers as a member of ERS, I think I'd be able to work better without joining,"Coinchii said, refusing the offer.

"Very well to even the offerings, I'll allow you access to an apprentice of mine. He'll carry out your orders without a second thought, unless of course it'll harm me in some manner. He should prove useful in creating countermeasures and defenses against AIs,"Code offered.

"Both sides have declared their offers, we'll now move on to the second to last phase of the negotiations, I will recite the expectations, conditions, and possible alliance 'killers' of said alliance,"Skyld said, walking back into the middle.

----------

Mohi fell to the ground panting.

"Log out, Mohi, it won't be good if you get too injured,"Ace replied, jumping in front of Mohi.

"I have to be able to do more,"Mohi grunted, picking himself up.

"The importance of the si-"Demon began, before cutting off to jump back from an attack,"of this negotiation makes him feel as though he has to do more than just give up."

Demon shouted while jumping on to the trunk and began stabbing wildly. Ace ran back up to join the fight and slashed at the Mammoth's ankles a few times. The Mammoth finally gave out and fell on it's side, the many fighters fleeing so they wouldn't get crushed beneath the 50 foot tall behemoth. The various melee classes ran up, attacking the Mammoth rapidly while the wavemasters and archers attacked from afar.

At last the Mammoth turned grey and blew away into dust. A few fighters who were on top of the Mammoth had fallen on the ground. Half the players began cheering at their victory while others ran to aid in the killing of the remaining two and Jade, who had left this group to rescue another Mammoth who was beginning to weaken.

----------

Pyro fell to the ground with a thud, panting. She was on her knees, sweating.

"One of the Mammoths have fallen,"Aqua reported.

"This fight is dragging out too long, it's sapping all of my energy,"Pyro replied, panting.

"If you have enough energy to create even one harpy I'll remove it's data, we'll wipe out this entire map,"Kiiro offered.

"No, our orders don't allow us to risk endangering Coinchii's life,"Aqua replied, quickly. "Also you know as well as I do that I can't control a monster when you drain it's data, no one can."

"But-"Kiiro said.

"Remember the wasteland where we created the three harpies? Our boss waited until she was sure there would be no more intruders before she went there and removed the dataless harpies."

"T'ch, fine,"Kiiro replied, folding her arms and closing her eyes.

Pyro grunted again and fell too her knees again. She managed to stand back up, but she was wobbling.

"We're going to have to do something soon or else this attack will fail,"Kiiro replied, completely serious this time.

"We've berely managed to reduce their numbers, if it keeps up the only thing we'll be able to accomplish is wasting time. We'll have to retreat,"Aqua replied.

-----------

"Are both sides agreed to the stated conditions?"Skyld asked, looking around.

"CC Corp's party understands,"Azara said.

"Code's group also understands,"Code followed.

"Do both sides agree to the alliance?"Skyld asked.

"I, Azara, agree to the alliance,"Azara started.

"I, Code, agree to the alliance."

"I, Momiri, agree to the alliance."

_I guess we all have to say it. _Coinchii thought to himself.

"I, Orion, agree to the alliance."

"I, AnakinseZ, agree to the alliance."

"I, Venus, agree to the alliance."

_My turn_

"I, Coinchii, agree to the alliance,"Coinchii replied, grinning confidently.

"Everyone in both parties has discussed and everyone has agreed, with this I declare the QuadC alliance as taking effect,"Skyld declared.

"QuadC?"Coinchii asked.

"CC Corp, is three of those C's and Code is the fourth C,"Orion answered.

"Now, us three have to be off, we'll observing the conditions, don't let us down,"Azara replied looking at the others.

Venus, Azara, and Momiri appeared to have logged off, while the remaining members left the dome. Shot met up with Orion at the exit and they ran off.

"Skyld, AnakinseZ, I'm glad we can finally talk again,"Coinchii said.

"I'll have to apologize to the others, but mostly to you, Coinchii,"Skyld began, looking at the ground.

"Huh?"Coinchii asked, puzzled.

"I was too hasty in jumping to conclusions and because I immediantly placed a hatred for hackers over our friendship I ended up disowning you as part of my circle, if you will. I can only hope you'll accept my apology,"Skyld replied, bowing down.

Coinchii scratched the back of his head.

"I accept, but you know I never thought less of you,"Coinchii replied, trying to comfort him.

"Skyld and I were talking earlier, Coinchii, we would like to have another meeting with Code to discuss the past, hopefully we have information he'll be able to make use of,"AnakinseZ said.

"No problem, just name a time and place,"Code suddenly said.

Skyld went wide-eyed.

"Oh, Code, also I want to apologize to you as well. I took the fact you were hacker and steriotyped you, automatically thinking you were bad. For that I'm sorry,"Skyld said, looking up.

"Not another word of it, it's not something that'll bug me. As for this information, perhaps sometime within the next few days, I have some information to analyze, but I'll make time,"Code replied.

"Ah, of course,"Skyld replied.

"Alright I'm leaving the rest to you players, take down the AIs,"Code said, a sort of haste seemed apparent in his voice. "Oh Coinchii, also be careful, you're the most important person out there."

Coinchii had a sweatdrop fall down his face. _Why does he always phrase things so that it sounds like he's into me? _Coinchii asked himself, pulling out his weapon.

The three ran out into the mass crowd ready to fight, during the negotiations two of the Mammoth's had been taken out, before they could do anything though the last one began melting and soon vanished in a puddle.

----------

Pyro was laying on the ground, gripping her sides, wearing agony on her face.

"This isn't good,"Aqua said.

Jade had backed up and was doing all she could just to keep players away from the three.

"We should retreat. With Pyro out cold it's only a matter of time before Jade falls,"Kiiro said, picking up Pyro.

All of a sudden a heavy axemen charged through knocking the two AIs over. Jade picked him up with her trunk and flung him over the other players before he could do anything further. Suddenly other players were making it through.

"YOU DARE LOSE!?"an odd metallic voice suddenly sounded throughout the field. A bright white sun suddenly appeared above the field, causing everyone's attention to turn towards the sky.

"No!"Kiiro shouted wide-eyed.

"We really screwed up this time,"Aqua replied, fear-stricken.

Jade morphed back into her original form.

"So troublesome,"she panted, eyes closed.

* * *

Reviews, critizism, comments, suggestions, other stuff I don't feel like typing out, always welcome. Hopefully next week turns out to be a treat. 


	24. Chapter 25:Overflow

Alright, according to my main proofreader this chapter was supposidly easily four time better than the last chapter. So if you liked the last chapter, I'm guessing you'll like this one more, if the last chapter was kind of 'meh' hopefully this one redeems me. Also as I said before should a be a treat because of the debut within it. Enjoy.

* * *

"What's going on?"Skyld asked, stopping.

Him, Coinchii, and AnakinseZ had yet to reach the mass of players who had surrounded the AIs, but stopped fighting to do the large white light from above the battlefield.

"Skyld, it looks like her light, doesn't it?"AnakinseZ, looking over.

Coinchii looked between the two, unsure of what they were talking about.

"This light is a lot bigger though. Now that I think about it though, there were rumours about an odd white character,"Skyld said, his face was overcome by an odd mix of anger and curiosity.

Before anyone could do anything further a beam of red light shot from the white mass of light creating a path of obliterated players in the uncoordinated mass.

"Red?"Skyld said, he looked as though he wanted to run forward, but was being held back by some unknown force.

_They're in danger!_

Coinchii grunted and fell to his knees after hearing the voice. He let out an odd howl, and gripped his sides.

"Coinchii!"AnakinseZ said, kneeling down.

"It's happening again, Code!"

"Not good, Ryo's body looks like it's suffering shock!"

"We can't do anything anyways, someone watch over his body, everyone else keep watching over the data!"Code ordered, looking over at Ryo.

"Why am I in pain?"Coinchii managed to say, before screaming.

Another red beam shot out from the white light and took out another line of players. It stopped mid-way though, and shot past the players.

"It's heading this way!"AnakinseZ shouted, putting his weapon away.

The beam sped towards the three, AnakinseZ grabbed Coinchii and jumped out of the way, dodging the beam. Skyld was on the other side of the ditch-like scar left in the earth by the beam.

----------

"I thought we weren't supposed to harm Coinchii,"Pyro said, somewhat recovering.

"You guys!"Mohi shouted, making his way in the middle of the large circle

"Wait up,"Cuoka grunted, following behind him.

The two emerged from the surrounding crowd, Demon came out just after the two, his daggers out.

"I may not be able to lead an offence, but I'm sure I'm I can still fight a few worthless players,"Kiiro said, walking between the three players and her comrades.

Mohi pulled out his orb.

"Ani K-"he tried to say, but was silenced as Kiiro jump-kicked him.

Mohi fell back, hard. Probably because of the earlier injuries of his previous fight he was struggling to just sit up. Demon jumped between Kiiro and Mohi. Kiiro grinned and sprinted forward, ducking under one of Demon's slashes. She halted, bringing her fist up, but Demon backflipped, then slashed with his daggers in a X shaped style. It was pointless though as Kiiro had already gotten out of his sight.

Cuoka had been made her new target. He made a straight forward punch at her face, but she ducked out of the way as she slid her foot in a circle, tripping Cuoka. He caught himself as he fell to the ground, but before he could go any farther was nailed in the back of the head by a blow from Kiiro

----------

"Everyone!"AnakinseZ shouted, running up to the crowd. "October and ERS, retreat!"

"Retreat!"some others shouted afterwards.

Suddenly several upon several more golden rings began appearing as characters logged out or warped to town.

"Last time the secondary brainwaves took over a lot faster, could it be Ryo is trying to reject them?"Code asked himself, intently staring at a window on his moniter.

Skyld grabbed Coinchii and jumped out of the way of another red beam.

"There you are,"Orion shouted running up.

"Whatever is in that light is probably the boss of the AIs, but I don't get why its taking such lethal measures to attack Coinchii."

"I'm not sure, either, but everyone else is retreating, what are you goi-"Orion stopped, pushing Skyld, who was holding Coinchii, out of the way of another attack.

"What are you gonna do?"Orion asked.

"Not everyone is running, Coinchii's friends are fighting, and I'm sure AnakinseZ is going to continue as well.

"I found him,"AnakinseZ said running along one of the scars in the earth.

The black, katar-wielding twinblade, Zero, was behind him.

"You expect me to believe that story,"Zero asked, twisting his neck to crack it.

"It doesn't matter if you do or not, but I would like you to watch over Coinchii,"AnakinseZ asked.

"You do know, I would be more useful in fighting, right?"Zero asked, yawning.

Suddenly another red beam shot out aiming for the five. Zero effortlessly sideflipped out of the way while the others dove out of the way. All of a sudden a wierd aura started eminating from Coinchii, although invisible, it could be felt. He stopped clinging to his sides, and stood up, looking over at the four, his eyes took on their oh so famous gray with red streaks form.

"It's him,"AnakinseZ said, starting to grin.

"It is you, right?"Skyld asked.

"Ugh, you people always beat around the bush,"Zero muttered.

"Huh?"Orion asked clueless.

"Jugatsu,"Zero replied, smirking.

"Jugatsu...Thats!"Orion said, suddenly remembering Code's earlier theory.

"I guess everyone's realized it,"Coinchii answered, pulling out his sword.

Skyld and AnakinseZ were motionless.

"This means Code was correct, Skyld and AnakinseZ, you were involved in the first incident,"Orion said, grabbing the two.

"Ugh, I can honestly say, I'm not used to a heavyblade class, but I've seen Coinchii use it enough,"Coinchii said to himself.

He ran off to divert the next beam from the others.

----------

Cuoka blocked a blow coming from the right, but was nailed by a left jab, everyone suddenly paused and looked up as the light now began fade.

"Shit,"Kiiro cursed, getting back by the other three.

Pyro had recovered enough to stand by now, but was still panting.

"The identity of the boss,"Gyuni said, clinching her staff.

"Get ready, Gyuni,"Miryo said, holding her own staff forward.

"Mohi, get out of here now,"Demon ordered.

"Since when did I lose my position as group leader?"Mohi joked, still sitting injured.

Demon didn't reply. Mohi gave in, sighing.

"Very well, but since I'm not risking my life this time, you guys better not either,"Mohi said, standing up, holding his stomach.

"Good,"Orion said, running over, with Skyld and AnakinseZ.

"Where's Coinchii?"Miryo asked.

"He's with Zero, they're planning on taking out the AIs while we keep the boss busy,"Skyld replied.

The light finally died out revealing the boss.

AnakinseZ and Skyld looked on awestruck. The boss was a girl, one that looked younger than the AIs, She had a pale skin that matched the color of her white hair. Her eyes matched the same color of her dress, it was a type of red that gave off a radiance, that one would feel looking at blood. On her back was two swords, one that looked like a blademaster weapon and another that looked like a heavyblade weapon.

The blademaster weapon was completely black, except for a gold lining from the guard of the sword that ran to the tip of the sword's point. The heavyblade sword was of a similar fashion, but instead of one line, it had two lines criss-crossing around the center of the blade until it reacher the end.

"It's Dawn,"Skyld said, aloud.

Orion looked over, ready to listen to anything him or AnakinseZ might say. He noticed in the short time he's been around them they tend to talk aloud when something leaves them awestricken.

"No, that red, it's not just Dawn, it's also Dusk,"AnakinseZ replied.

"Dawn and Dusk?"Orion questioned, tracing his memory for any prior events that might relate to this.

"Jugatsu somehow appeared in Coinchii and this Dawn Dusk hybrid is back, what's going on?"Skyld asked.

All of a sudden the AI boss held her hand towards AnakinseZ

"Who are you?!"AnakinseZ shouted angrily.

A red beam of light, more compact than before nailed AnakinseZ in the gut, sending him to the ground and sliding back a considerable distance.

"Ana-"Skyld said, before getting blasted away himself.

The next person aimed at was Orion, who attempted to block it with his spear. It was futile, the beam shot right through the weapon, snapping it, and then hit Orion, sending him away.

"Zero, cancel the attack, we have to retreat for now,"Skyld said aloud, while sending a message.

Orion landed nearby.

"Gyuni!"Cuoka shouted, jumping in the way of the next attack which was aimed at Gyuni. Cuoka hit the ground and slid towards where Miryo and Gyuni were standing.

"We have to leave,"Demon said, running over.

"Right,"Miryo replied.

The two logged out.

"Cuoka?"Gyuni asked, picking him up.

"Good, you're safe,"Cuoka said, weakened.

----------

"A situation like this...we'll need a plan a hell of a lot better than the last one,"Coinchii said, closing his eyes.

"It's good to see you again,"Zero replied, looking over.

"Anyways, it probably would be best for me to log out now. Make sure you stay safe, Zero,"Coinchii said, grinning at him.

"Of course,"Zero responded.

Zero warped away.

"And you two,"Coinchii said, aloud even though no one was by him. "I plan on having a reunion, you guys better not mess up either."

Coinchii looked over at Gyuni and Cuoka who were still on the map. He quickly sent them a message telling them to get out, before he went to log out. After a short moment he got a reply and saw the two leave.

"Alright, everyone is out, now I'll leave,"Coinchii replied, putting his sword back on his back.

"You four,"the boss suddenly said.

Coinchii stopped from logging out, if the AIs didn't notice him it wouldn't hurt to do some recon.

"Sorry, boss,"Aqua said, getting on her hands and knees.

"Under the circumstances, we-"Pyro began, getting on her hands and knees like the others.

"I don't care. I gave you existance for a reason, when you fail you're telling me you don't want to live,"the boss replied harshly.

Unlike the first impression her voice wasn't metallic at all, but it was more like there was a light voice mixed and a heavy voice speaking in unison.

"But all the people...with our limited powers it was a lot harder than when you took so many out,"Kiiro replied.

Coinchii figured if anyone would keep their dignity it would've been Kiiro, but this boss apparently was enough to scare her.

"Enough, I've been forced to reveal myself, and they're now working together. You chose a pathetic time to screw up, expect to be punished,"the boss replied, harshly.

"Forgive u-"Jade tried to say before getting interrupted.

"Enough! This is the end of this matter, Jugatsu will be put on hold, we need to create some turmoil, our next step will be another town invasion."

"Yes, master,"the four AIs replied in unison.

The four disappeared in their respective colored lights, while the boss looked back at the dome. Coinchii randomly noticed this entire time she had been floating a few feet above the ground. She vanished in a white light.

"Code did you get all this?"Coinchii asked.

"Whoever you are, yeah, I got it,"Code replied into Coinchii's headset.

"Alright, I'll log out then."

"Ryo logged out!"

"I got him,"Orai said, pulling off his helmet to reveal an unconscience Ryo.

"Someone aid Orion as well, he took a hit from the AIs,"Code ordered.

Two people went over, one making sure it was safe to move him before doing so.

"Ryo would probably be fine if we just let him rest in his room,"Orai reported.

"Alright, you heard him people. Move Ryo to his room."

_This second person in Ryo...according to what Skyld and AnakinseZ if what they said is true...could it be possible that Jugatsu from the incident a few years back is inhabiting Ryo now? And the boss we just saw, Skyld and AnakinseZ muttered something about Dawn and Dusk. There were two AIs in the previous incident, could it be they fused? If I take what they said at face value, then it would have to be. _Code began thinking to himself.

"I'll be in my room going over sound clips, later bring the brainwaves, the video of Coinchii during all this, and physical and mental reaction data,"Code ordered, walking out of the room.

----------

"Hello?"Orai asked, answering the unconscience Ryo's cellphone.

"You're not Ryo, where is he?"someone on the other line asked.

"Ryo's unable to speak at the moment,"Orai replied.

"I'm his girlfriend, let me talk to him!"the person replied.

"I was unaware he had a girlfriend. I believe he's in love with another person called Sakura anyways,"Orai said, leaning against Ryo's dresser.

"WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK THIS IS!?"Sakura shouted on the side.

Orai pulled the phone away and wiped is ear from the pain.

"Sakura?"Orai asked.

"YES!"she replied angrily.

"Since when have you two been dating,"Orai asked.

"Sin-...Okay we aren't, but still,"Sakura moaned on the other side.

"Anyways, as I've previously said, Ryo is unable to speak at the moment. I'll remember to let him know you called,"Orai replied hanging up.

----------

"You requested me?"Data asked, walking into Code's room.

Various laptops were strewn about on the living room floor, a few desktop computers were off to the side, in the middle of all the wiring and technology Code was quickly looking back and forth between the different screens and hitting buttons at the same time.

"Yes, Code, I just finished going over the sound clips and comparing them to the results of my research about the previous incident. I trust your judgement so would you listen to the key clips I've selected and tell me what you think?"Code asked, without shifting his attention from the computers.

"Of course, sir,"Data replied, sitting down at a desktop computer and putting on some headphones.

Data listened to the various clips taking notes on certain points while Code continued working on his laptops.

"Alright,"Code finally said aloud,"These clips should be seperated between the different behavior moments. If I compare previous scenes, judge the physical and mental changes between them..."

Code hit some more buttons on his computer.

"Ryo's movements held the same similarity in both Coinchii and Oblivion, but after the secondary waves took over completely, they change at an entirely different rate. Most of his attributes seem to increase, and his mental state appears to on a higher level based off his muttering. It appears as though he was able to better process information, but I can't tell what he's thinking unfortunatly, so I can't confirm this,"Code said, making a displeased face.

He held his chin for a moment then walked over to a desktop computer, turning it on. While starting up he began rapidly hitting the keys and the start-up process seemed to fast forward so much so, that he quickly came to the altimit operating system menu. He clicked on to an unnamed file and a window similar MS-DOS program came up. He began typing and the window quickly filled. He paused, taking a deep breath and hit the enter button. Suddenly a large list of menus and odd symbols appeared.

"Code, I've pieced together my opinion of information, are you ready to hear it?"Data asked, turning around in his seat.

"Yeah,"Code replied.

"In your original theory there were two AIs, and you figured the three characters who held a major importance were Skyld, AnakinseZ, and another player called Jugatsu. They've mentioned Jugatsu in these clips, and we can agree that there are two minds in Ryo at the moment. Thinking back, you said one map was disconnected and deleted shortly afterwards, if that's true and they were on the map when it was deleted they would've just ended up in the Deletion Zone. With the abilities to create other AIs, and cause so much damage to people's bodies through the injuring the players, it would mean the boss is incredibly powerful. So much that she would be able to enter and leave the Deletion Zone at her will. We've managed to do so, it isn't impossible. Anyways, looking at this, from a simple deduction, I would gather that perhaps during the deletion of the two AIs their data was mixed and they were formed into a single AI which slowly began regaining power. Also the second mind within Ryo has a chance of being Jugatsu."

"Hmm, so pretty much what I came to the conclusion of, with a few differences,"Code said, returning to the analyzing of data on the monitor

"If I may, I would suggest a trip to the Deletion Zone, perhaps if we can find a place that looks a battle worn field we would have more proof than the muttering of two players,"Data suggested.

"Hmm, call Orion in here, if he's better. That doesn't sound like a bad plan."

"Right away,"Data said, taking his leave.

_I already know it'll be there, but we might be able to find clues if I can trace the history of the data. Even though it's been deleted if it still exists then it's history should be recoverable. _Code thought to himself, walking over to his laptops again.

----------

"So he'll be out for a bit longer?"someone said, as Orion's eyes opened. He wiped his eyes, to get rid of the blur.

"Huh, he's already awake?"someone else suddenly replied.

"He does tend to be stubborn at times,"Data said.

Orion got up and looked around.

"Luckily, he didn't take massive damage, he's more or less fine as long as he doesn't push himself,"a doctor said to Data.

"That's right, I was hit by the AI boss,"Orion said, holding his head.

"Are you feeling good enough to see Code?"Data asked, offering him a hand.

"Yeah, I'd be a horrible apprentice if I couldn't endure a bit of pain every now and then,"Orion said, standing up.

"Well technically we're still grunts, but if you're referring to the fact a new apprentice will be chosen soon,"Data replied.

"You know what I mean,"Orion replied.

The two made their way back to Code's room.

"You wanted me?"Orion asked, he was trying to act fine, but it was obvious he wasn't as well as he wanted everyone to believe.

"Data proposed a trip to the Deletion Zone in search of the field that was deleted at the end of incident those years ago. With the arrival of the AI boss I'll be swamped with research. I'm going to leave you in charge of it,"Code said, not looking away from his work.

"Isn't that the work of an apprentice?"Orion asked, surprised.

"I'll make it official later, but yeah, I'm making you an apprentice, meaning you can use any cover up name you'd like,"Code replied.

"Until I think of one, I'll use my real name if you don't mind,"Orion replied.

"Fine fine, either way, you'll be in charge of this recon mission, I expect everyone to get in there and get out with little trouble,"Code said, dismissing the two.

Data closed the door as they exited the room.

"So, Orion what's you're real name anyways?"Data asked as they headed back to Ryo's room.

"My real name is Kaiyen."

"Kaiyen, eh,"Data responded.

"You know, now that I think about it, the blast of energy, didn't really hurt us that bad. That AI merely weakened us, meaning she had no intent on killing Coinchiii after all,"the newly renamed Kaiyen replied.

"You just came to the conclusion?"Data asked.

"Well I was unconscience until a short while ago,"Kaiyen defended.

"Well, as with Code, you know I'm always willing to help. So if you ever have trouble with this project, I'm willing to be of use,"Data offered.

Kaiyen knocked opened the door and found Ryo sitting up on his bed.

"Orion?"Ryo asked, still feeling out of it somewhat.

"It's Kaiyen, now. Anyways, Ryo, I've been put in charge of a mission I'd like you to accompany the team I'm planning on putting together,"Kaiyen asked.

"Team? Kaiyen?"Ryo asked.

"I should probably explain,"Kaiyen said, holding his fist to his chin.

Ryo shook his head, and yawned.

"Code just promoted me, I'm now an official apprentice. He usually allows his new apprentices access to five other people to have on a team, from past experiance. Data just offered to join the team, I want you to join as well."

"What about the other three?"Ryo asked.

"I'll get Orai. He's been friendlier since he's met you, then I'll get probably recruit Sakura, and someone else from the data phase to help me out,"Kaiyen explained.

"Sakura?"Ryo asked, clueless.

"Yeah, she really only left to get ready to move in here. We had here help with the negotiations at her house to keep things simple though,"Kaiyen explained.

"You kept this a secret from me?"Ryo asked, looking annoyed.

"Right, Data, let's go find Orai now,"Kaiyen said, taking his leave.

"You wouldn't be hoping to keep Ryo in your team permanantly would you?"Data asked as they walked down the hall.

"Code shouldn't have a problem letting me have him on my team every now and then,"Kaiyen said, lazily.

"Even if he is like a kid brother to you, we don't know what'll happen after all this is over,"Data said, obviously implying something.

"I can't really help the way I feel, can I? Anyways, another reason I want him for this task is because the person in him, I'm guessing, is Jugatsu from the incident awhile back. If we return to an old battleground the person inside might awaken and we might able to get some more clues."

"What are you basing that off of?"Data asked.

"I get a warrior-feel from him and an old battlefield is like a gateway into a warrior's mind,"Kaiyen said, coming up to Orai's door.

* * *

So, opinions, was my proofreader wrong or right, anything particular you might have liked in this chapter, or perhaps some element I haven't had recently? Reviews, suggestions, comments, all welcome per usual. And there's only one more chapter before catches up with my work on the story.'til next week. 


	25. Chapter 26:Deletion Zone

With this it means is up-to-date. It also means I'll hopefully have enough time to get out at least one chapter per two weeks as I promised. Enjoy.

* * *

"Everything's happening fast, I gotta do my best to keep up,"Ryo muttered to himself as he waited in the front lobby with Data to greet Sakura.

"After Sakura gets settled we'll probably be going into the Deletion Zone,"Data said, yawning.

"But didn't Orion-...Eh, Kaiyen just suggest it the other day? Why are we taking action so quickly?"Ryo complained.

"Probably because the faster we can gather information the faster we can prepare our offense. You also have to remember that we're going into the AI's main territory, even if we aren't going to the mansion they created as their base, they still might try and attack us, especially you,"Data answered.

"And lemme guess, because we're moving so fast, the AIs won't be ready for our intrusion?"Ryo replied sarcasticly.

"Actually, yes."

A sweatdrop fell down Ryo's head. He checked his watch, it was still early, but Sakura seemed to be taking forever.

"Alright,"Kaiyen said, suddenly coming out from one of the doorways."Is my last member here yet?"

"Sakura still hasn't arrived, unfortunatly,"Data answered, putting his hands in his pocket.

Kaiyen grumbled."Hey Ryo, why don't you give her a call, you have her number, don't you?"

"Oh yeah,"Ryo responded, feeling like an idiot.

He pulled out his cellphone and scrolled through his saved numbers. He selected Sakura's and put the phone to his ear.

"Sakura?"Ryo asked once someone picked up.

"Ryo!"Sakura screamed happily into the phone.

Kaiyen took the phone from Ryo.

"Yeah, Sakura, we're waiting for, you what's taking you so long?"Kaiyen asked.

"Hey, I just realized she hasn't used honerables in a while,"Ryo said to himself.

"Anyways, I'm starting a team over here, Ryo's going to be in it, I want you to come as well. We have a mission already set up, once you get ready we'll be starting."

"Oh, that's right,"Ryo said suddenly.

"Need anything?"Data responded.

"When we were in "The World" yesterday, my body through intense pain, I tried to fight it off, but it still caused me to blackout. Do you or Code or anyone know what's happening? I think it's the same thing as when I was supposed to try out Oblivion for the first time, but I don't remember anything from it,"Ryo said, scratching the back of his head.

"We're close to figuring it out, after we head to the Deletion Zone, I'll explain it to you,"Kaiyen answered.

Ryo looked over, feeling relieved that he would finally know what's wrong with him.

"When's Sakura arriving?"Data inquired.

"Oh, she'll be here any minute, Code had someone pick her up a little over an hour ago, and the trip is around 30 minutes to get there if you hurry."

"Hmm,"Ryo said, bending his head down in thought.

"Now for rolls,"Kaiyen said, before Ryo could actually do any thinking.

"Rolls?"Ryo replied.

"Yes. The party going in-game will consist of Orai as Shot, Sakura as Miryo, and Ryo as Coinchii. Me and Data will observe the information from outside."

"Weren't you supposed to get someone else from the data phase as well?"

"Haven't found one yet, but we should more than enough for a quick trip to the Deletion Zone."

"How will we get there anyways? You know how to hack us into the Deletion Zone?"Ryo asked, curious.

"Yeah...well not completely, but I'll be able to figure it out as I go, and soon Code will probably have that 'gate' ready for whenever we need to access the Deletion Zone in the near future."

"Ryo!"someone shouted as the doors flew open, that someone obviously being Sakura.

"Hi Sak-"Ryo tried to say before glomped and nuzzled.

A sweatdrop fell down his head.

"Data, let's go get her bags and bring her to her room,"Kaiyen suggested, walking out.

"Sakura, get off me,"Ryo moaned.

"But I missed you!"Sakura responded pretending to cry.

"Yeah, well we have work to do. Around here we have to be more responsible."

Sakura pouted. "First you confess to me, then you return to normal, you're no fun."

Ryo had a sweatdrop fall down his head. _What I get for getting lost in the moment _he thought to himself.

"Alright, let's go,"Kaiyen said, walking past the two with some of Sakura's luggage.

Ryo noticed the Coinchii plushie on top of one of the briefcases. Sakura finally got off of him and the followed Kaiyen to the third floor. Sakura's room ended up next to Ryo's. The three then left Sakura to get settled, grabbing Orai on the way to the computer room. After entering, Orai and Ryo went to their seats.

"Well, this'll be my first time using the main computer,"Kaiyen replied, looking a bit wary.

He walked up and hit a few keys, causing it to start up. Code's seat was near-by so he grabbed it and sat down. Data went to his computer, and began setting up a program of some sort.

"Alright, just hang tight until Sakura gets in "The World", meanwhile I'll preparing your transfer sequence,"Kaiyen replied, taking a deep breath.

Orai and Ryo logged on.

Coinchii appeared in front of the Mac Anu Chaos Gate, Shot right behind him.

"So I guess now we wait,"Coinchii said, sitting on the stairs.

"What's the Deletion Zone, like?"Shot asked, sitting against a wall above the stairs.

"Huh, you've never been there?"Coinchii asked, looking up.

"The only people who've been there personally were the AIs, you, Kaiyen, Mohi, and that Zero guy."

"Zero...Zero...oh yeah, that guy. Well it's like a trash can, I guess. Whenever anything gets deleted, it appears there. Last time I was there it looked like a trashed version of Mac Anu, mixed with a trashed version of Dun Lorieg. It was like an entire town. I didn't get to see much though, since I was quickly forced to escape. But while escaping I saw a bunch of odd things. The data stream could be seen floating around, you'll see what looks like players, but with damaged data, there's also little light, it's like it's midnight there, almost,"Coinchii explained.

"Twilight...It's ironic,"Shot said with a chuckle.

"What's ironic about it?"

"Oh yeah, that's right, Kaiyen hasn't told you about it. I'll leave the details to him, but you remember the incident a few years back? You've been in the institute for awhile, I'm sure you know of it."

"Yeah."

Miryo suddenly appeared.

"Oh, I'll explain later,"Shot said.

"Explain what?"Miryo asked.

"Nothing,"he replied standing up.

There was a bit of static in the sound suddenly.

"What was that?"Miryo asked.

"Can you guys hear me?"Kaiyen said into their headsets.

"Oh,"Miryo replied.

"We hear you,"Shot answered.

"Awesome, I got it working,"Kaiyen replied. "Alright, get ready. I should be able to transfer you three now."

"Oh, Miryo were you filled in on the details?"Coinchii asked.

"Yeah, O-Kayine, told me,"Miryo replied, scratching the back of her head.

"Kaiyen, you mean?"Coinchii replied with a sweatdrop.

"Yeah,"Miryo responded.

Shot suddenly disappeared in golden rings.

"Sorry, it's a bit more difficult than I figured, I'll get better, but for now I can only figure out how to transfer one at a time,"Kaiyen apologized.

Coinchii saw rings surround him as he was transfered next. As the rings vanished he found himself by the gate he used to escape from his first visit.

"Interesting,"Shot said, looking around at the building which looked to a mixture of Dun Lorieg and Mac Anu buildings.

Miryo appeared next.

"Alright, we're all here,"Coinchii said.

"Good, I'm bringing the Deletion Zone up on my computer, if I see the AIs coming towards any of you, I'll warn you in advance. Until I get more data I won't know much about the map, so unfortunatly you'll have to split up and search for anything that looks like a field where a big battle took place,"Kaiyen ordered.

"But I don't wanna split up with, Coinchii,"Miryo said, grabbing Coinchii.

"C'mon, be more mature,"Coinchii said.

"Fine,"Miryo responded, sighing and giving in.

"Don't head west, that's were the AIs' mansion is. Any other direction should be fine,"Kaiyen said.

_You can tell he's not used to this _Coinchii thought to himself.

"I'll north east then,"Shot said.

"I'll go along this main road,"Miryo said, dragging her feet forward.

"I guess I'll go east, through those alleys,"Coinchii said, heading off.

"I said I would tell you what we've discovered so far, but make sure to keep looking around meanwhile,"Kaiyen said into Coinchii's headset.

"Will do,"Coinchii replied, looking back as everyone disappeared from sight.

"Remember the story Data told you awhile back? About that incident that took place in "The World"?"

"Yeah, I remember."

"We've come to the conclusion that when the map was broken off and deleted, three people were still on there. The two AIs, and the player known as Jugatsu. Because they were deleted, err, the rest is from Data and Code's analysis, but because they were deleted the three should've ended up here. This wasn't the case though, during the deletion, Jugatsu disappeared all together, and the two AIs seemed to have merged into one. They're still not sure how it all happened, but they believe that there's a second mind within yours and that the second mind is Jugatsu."

Coinchii stopped, midstep. _The voice in my head was the voice of Jugatsu...and this eye is proof of my contract with Jugatsu. Jugatsu used to be in a group of three with Skyld and AnakinseZ...and I- _Coinchii thought coming to the conclusion.

"Coinchii?"Kaiyen asked.

"The second mind, I've been aware of it for awhile,"Coinchii said, resuming his walk through the alleys.

"You have?"

"Yeah, it used to speak to me inside my head, but I thought I was just going crazy or something because of the events. Then around the time I was about to join Code it spoke to me, asking me if it could share my body. In exchange it said it would help me get revenge for all the trouble the AIs had caused me,"Coinchii answered.

"And that's were your gray eye with red streaks must have come from. Did you accept?"Kaiyen asked.

"Yeah. Wait! Does that mean the times when I blacked out Jugatsu took control of me?"Coinchii asked, piecing it together.

"Yeah, he's taken control of you twice, but because of it we've gotten a lot of information, we can barely keep up with it all,"Kaiyen responded.

"Do you know why he ended up in my head?"Coinchii asked, having his own theory in mind.

"All of us have a few ideas, but we can't say for sure,"Kaiyen replied.

"I think it might be, that I'm similar to him,"Coinchii replied, appearing on a street within Deletion Zone. He took a left and began walking North along the road.

"How so?"Kaiyen asked.

"Well, he used to be in a group with AnakinseZ and Skyld, right? I'm in a group with Suichi and Dylan. Also the first day I played "The World", I ran into Skyld and AnakinseZ who I ended up becoming friends with. I think that might be why,"Coinchii said, a serious tone in his voice.

"Coinchii...that's a horrible theory, here I was thinking you had some intelligence,"Kaiyen responded, with a disappointed tone in his voice.

"Hey!"Coinchii replied defending himself.

Kaiyen sighed.

"Anyways, I told you what I said I would, I'll be going over information if you need me,"Kaiyen responded.

"Don't you run away!"Coinchii shouted looking up.

He muttered to himself while folding his arms.

_Now that I think about it, that would be a pretty lame reason. If only I could talk to 'Jugatsu' like I used to. _Coinchii thought.

He continued walking the down street looking around. Nothing seemed to lead towards any hint of a field-like area. He stopped at the top of a near by hill and turned around, facing south. He was able to see the cut-off of the town, and off in the distance what he believed was the AIs' mansion. He looked south east, and saw nothing besides more buildings and a river. He turned north and continued walking.

----------

Shot slowly walked up to a door, looking around. He hadn't found anythings around the backroads. He had also observed that even though the town had traits of Mac Anu and Dun Lorieg it was several times larger, almost as if it was a real town. If it was the size of a real town searching it could take days.

He pulled the door open and walked inside. It appeared to be a normal house, if a bit abandoned. Beneath the dust and cobwebs there was everything you would find in a normal house; a television, couch, coffee table, through one doorway Shot was able to see a kitchen. He looked around for the staircase and went up stairs. With each step he took in the house creeking would echo through out. He went into a door on the right and looked inside, finding a bathroom. The window was a mess, but after finding a rag and running it under water he was able to clean it off.

_Something about the Deletion Zone is wrong. If it's just supposed to be deleted data why is it like a normal town from the real world? The AIs would have no reason to do this... _Shot thought, looking out the window at the house across the alley.

The house proved to have no clues so he left it alone.

"Kaiyen?"Shot said, closing the front door.

"Yeah, Shot?"

"I just checked in one of the houses, it resembles a normal house...as in a house from the real world. I can't think of any reason the AIs would adjust data to make it look like this. Also the Deletion Zone is way too big to be just deleted data. Something is going on here. Whenever Code finishes his current work -"Shot was saying, before getting interupted.

"I see your point, but Code made me an apprentice, the last thing I want to do is let him down. He left this task to me so for now let's just focus on the field. I'll see if I can look into your theory. Before I do so however, check a few more buildings see if they resemble real houses as well. If they do look for something like a store or library. Whatever happens though, remember the primary task is looking for the battle field still,"Kaiyen replied.

"Right, I'll remember my orders,"Shot responded.

He still couldn't shake the feeling that was bugging him over the town within the Deletion Zone. He continued up the block and chose a house at random to go in. The layout of the house was different, but it was still similar in the fact it was like a house from the real world. He walked over and picked up a remote from the dusty, glass-top table. The television came on, but he was only able to get static no matter which channel he tried. He gave up and turned it off, before walking into the kitchen. There was nothing inside the refridgerator, cabinets, or pantry.

"This is making me feel really uncomfortable,"Shot said to himself under his breath.

He shook his head, trying to remember his real task, the field. He closed the door walking out of the house. He continued down the street, if there was a field it would probably be in an area of the town where a park might be, or off to the outskirts, but from the looks of it outside of the town's boundries was nothing more than a virtual abyss.

"Kaiyen,"Shot said yet again.

"Yeah?"

"If this is set up like a town then the field might be in an area where a park might be,"Shot said, knowing Kaiyen would be able to realize where he was going with the statement.

"I had Data run a search to see if any towns have a similar layout to the Deletion Zone, but so far, nothing. If anything a park would typically be either off of the main road, or a road immediantly from a main road. Let me send you the map so you can see what we have so far."

"Alright,"Shot said, waiting.

A map suddenly appeared in front the archer. He seemed to have gone a considerable way from the main road. By the looks of Miryo's path she had been simply following the main road, Coinchii had run into another main road at some point.

"Let me know when you're done,"Kaiyen said into his headset.

"I've seen enough, thanks,"Shot responded.

The map vanished. Since the Deletion Zone wasn't a real place meant for playing in, it wasn't a surprise that the normal interface didn't have a map. Shot turned northwest and continued on his way.

----------  
"I wonder what Coinchii is thinking about right now,"Miryo asked herself as she walked along the sidewalk.

She glanced back and forth between the shop windows, all of which were empty.

"This town sucks,"she moaned.

She sat down on a near-by bench. This whole thing seemed like a waste of time at the moment. She felt as though they had been looking for at least two hours already. There hadn't been any interesting finds and the broken player data that traveled along the main road usually just looped it's movement. The broken data seemed to avoid alleys for whatever reason, Miryo had noticed. She hadn't seen any of them in an alley since they began looking, only a few of them were on the road and touching them shattered their data causing a wierd sound that hurt her ears.

She wiped off her forehead, not that there was sweat, and got up to continue walking.

"Kaiyo-...whatever your name is. Has anyone even found anything yet?"Miryo pouted.

"Kaiyen...and not yet, but don't give up now,"Kaiyen mumbled.

Sakura sighed and continued walking down hill, along the sidewalk still.

" 'whatever you name is.' Pft.."Kaiyen muttered.

"Huh?"Miryo asked, not clearly hearing it.

"Err..."Kaiyen said, before his voice disappeared.

Miryo yawned and wiped some water from her eyes with her index finger.

----------

"Kaiyen!"Coinchii suddenly shouted.

"What?"

"We have a problem,"Coinchii said, drawing his weapon.

"Huh? Let me get a video feed up,"Kaiyen commented.

All of a sudden a player-shaped shadow carrying an axe slashed downwards. Coinchii brought his weapon up, blocking it then spun his sword in a helicopter fashion flinging it into the shadow, tearing it in half.

"What are those?"Kaiyen asked surprised.

Several character-like shadows were converging on Coinchii's location. Instead of being on the ground or a wall, though, they had a physical shape. Coinchii grabbed his sword.

"They might be from an old event,"Kaiyen said.

"But why are they only in this area?"Coinchii asked, slashing through another one, a heavyblade shaped one.

"Unfortunately the others are too far away. Coinchii you'll have to manage alone on this one,"Kaiyen said, a tinge of nervousness was barely audible in his voice.

Coinchii spun around, his sword out and took out three shadows. He brought his sword back and slashed downwards in front of him killing another one. With every shadow killed it was as though more appeared, no matter how many Coinchii took out they were still surrounding him and trying to mob him. He let out a howl and charged forward slashing the shadows in his path. He took a few hits, but managed to get out of the mob. He covered a wound he had recieved on his left shoulder with his hand and took off running away.

"Okay, Coinchii, the others are heading your way, but they won't be here for here at least 10 minutes or longer,"Kaiyen said.

A shadow suddenly jumped out from a house's window, but it was quickly taken out by a thrust of the sword. Coinchii kept running, the shadows following him. Up ahead was a river and there was no way the shadows would let him take ten minutes of their time to allow the others to come. He had no choice, though, and continued running towards the river. The houses were too close together and there wasn't any other roads he could've taken to get out.

"This is like some cheezy horror movie,"Coinchii said, letting go of his injury and holding his weapon as it dragged behind him.

He finally ran out of room to run, coming to the edge of the road. He turned around and the shadows were still heading towards him. Coinchii cursed under his breath, knowing there was no way he would be able to take them all out.

_Wait a minute! Maybe Jugatsu can do something, but how do I get him out? _Coinchii thought, holding his weapon up, even though he wasn't going to fight. The shadow people continued to close in. It probably hadn't been three minutes, let alone ten minutes, there was no way Shot or Miryo was going to reach him in time and those were the only two in the Deletion Zone that would help if anything. They were mere feet away now, in a few second they would be on top of Coinchii and he wouldn't be able to fight them off. Coinchii sighed.  
"I guess we weren't prepared enough,"he said, kneeling down.

Suddenly a stream of fire appeared tearing through mass numbers of the shadow people. Scorch marks were left on the ground as the bodies of the shadow people began to vanish. All of them were wiped out. Coinchii looked back, seeing a snake-like dragon, probably about 20 or 30 feet long with a metalic look to it.

"That dragon...just saved me?"Coinchii asked, standing back up.

The dragon changed its direction of flight and charged towards Coinchii. Coinchii brought his sword up to sheild himself, but the dragon changed direction before hitting him and instead whipped him with its tail sending him flying. He dropped his sword upon impact and slid on the road a few feet.

"Why's it attacking me now?"Coinchii asked, sitting up.

He paused realizing who the dragon probably was. A glow suddenly radiated from above and he darted away. Looking back he saw a stream of fire from the dragon's mouth.

"Kaiyen, that's Jade, isn't it?"Coinchii asked, dropping to the ground to avoid a charge from the dragon again.

He picked himself up as soon as the dragon passed and made a grab from his sword. Once it was in his hand he began running down the road. He'd have a better chance of getting away if he could get inside an alley where the dragon couldn't reach him.

"Kaiyen?...Kaiyen!?"Coinchii shouted, still running.

"We jammed communication with your little friend,"Kiiro's voice said out of nowhere.

Coinchii glanced back over his shoulder seeing Kiiro appear in a yellow ball of light upon the dragon's back.

"What are the odds you came to us,"Pyro's voice suddenly said.

Coinchii looked ahead seeing her standing in the road. He brought his weapon out and attempted to slash at Pyro, but a red, rock golem-like monster appeared in front of her and took the hit instead. The sword bounced off, Coinchii now surrounded by something worse than shadow people.

"Kaiyen!? Miryo!? Shot!?"Coinchii shouted, knowing it would be futile. He dropped his sword. "Is this the end...?"

* * *

So, two weekends from now on will be between with each chapter (unfortunatly). And the next chapter will be released on the last weekend of christmas break. I'll make sure I have plenty of work done before then. Till next time. 


	26. Chapter 27:Calm After the Storm

Alright, my system of working is usually Write- Go back and proof read- Have my proofreader do a second go through- I proofread it the third time before posting- I post. However, unfortunately it was somewhat messed up this time around because of a situation so I tried to delayed it. Anyways with that being said, sorry for the wait since I usually consider the weekend to be Friday-Sunday, and it today, being Monday, would mean it's late. Anyways, Enjoy.

* * *

Coinchii looked around him. He had Jade, who had transformed into some kind of dragon, and Kiiro behind him. Pyro had created a group of five golem-like monsters, Coinchii hadn't seen before, all around him. Pyro was in front of him, in the only direction he could escape to once he took out the Golems in the way, and knowing their usual pattern of work Aqua was probably somewhere around as well.

Coinchii knelt down to grab his weapon. At this point he only had two options, give in and let them take him, or fight and probably lose. Sword in position, he thrust his sword forward towards the golem, but the attack was merely reflected, doing no damage.

"Don't waste your time, love,"Pyro said on the other side, a pleased grin on her face.

Coinchii looked back, Jade had returned to normal, knowing Coinchii couldn't get away from the Golems.

"It's in your best interest to give up, like in your real world, if you get hurt in here, it affects you in the real world as well as in here,"Kiiro said, sitting down.

_The real world.. _Coinchii thought to himself, coming up with a possible idea. He glanced around, at the positions of the golems, before confirming anything.

"Just like the real world, eh?"Coinchii said, turning to his left.

Pyro looked at him puzzled.

"Get him before he can do anything,"Aqua suddenly said, appearing behind Pyro. "The boss is getting here soon."

Coinchii put his sword in the holder on his back and sprinted towards a house. The Golems attempted to catch him, but they had poor speed. Coinchii brought his arms up to cover his face and jumped through a window of a house. He rolled a few times bumping into a couch.

He let a huge sigh of relief escape. "I wasn't sure if that was going to work or not,"Coinchii admitted, getting up and looking around the room. The front door was suddenly bashed in, one of the Golems was struggling to force itself inside. Coinchii checked to make his sword was still there before running upstairs. He turned down the hallway and opened up one of the doors. He walked up to the window looking out, the other Golems appeared to be patiently waiting for the first one to try to get in. Pyro looked as though she was yelling at them. Aqua and Kiiro didn't appear to be doing anything.

"Where's Jade, though,"Coinchii asked, walking back from the window.

He headed for a room on the opposite side of the hallway. If he could bust through the window and get inside he could probably escape into a back alley. He opened up the nearest door and walked into a bedroom. There was a window, but there were bars on the outside. Coinchii cursed under his breath. There was a sound of something below being destroyed, Coinchii figured it was a Golem getting in finally.

_In the least I managed to buy some time, but I'm not safe since I can't escape. _Coinchii thought.  
At that moment the sound of something heavy hitting the stairs hit Coinchii's ears. A Golem must have been coming up. Coinchii looked around, but the room didn't have a closet.

"Dammit,"Coinchii said aggrevated.

"Coinchii!"

"Huh?"Coinchii replied, to the distant voice.

"Get out here!"the voice replied, lowly.

"It's us!"another voice followed.

"They managed to make it already?"Coinchii replied surprised.

He opened the door and went to run down, but a Golem turned towards him. He quickly darted into the previous room and ran up to the window. Shot was keeping Jade busy and Miryo was attacking the Golems. Kiiro was missing this time.

"There you are,"her voice suddenly sounded from outside the room.

There was a crumbling sound and some red rocks rolled into the doorway, followed by Kiiro.

"Why do you four always make everything so difficult,"Coinchii said aloud, but probably to himself more than Kiiro.

Kiiro ran forward, but before she could attack Coinchii had already jumped out the window and was falling towards the first floor. He rolled as he hit the ground, his hitpoints didn't take any damage, but it was still painful. He was wobbling, but managed to stand up.

"Vak Rom!"Miryo shouted.

A fiery tempest formed around one of the Golems, but the attack also hit the other Golems for several consecutive hits. Jade had turned her character into what looked like a heavy axeman, but beneath the rusty and hole-covered armor was a skeletal figure. Coinchii ran behind and managed to land a solid horizontal slash on her head. The head spun around and flew off, but the body was still moving. An arrow of Shot's hit the armor, sticking in, but it didn't stop her from swinging her mace into Coinchii's stomach.

"Coinchii!"Shot responded, upon seeing Coinchii.

"We can leave now, right?"Miryo asked, turning around.

"Yeah, we were supposed to get Coinchii and get out. Let's go,"Shot said, putting his bow on his back and retreating.

Coinchii swung upwards hitting Jade and knocking her over before running. Miryo's staff returned to her side, but before she could run Kiiro had jump kicked her frmo behind. Miryo was knocked forward a few steps before falling over. Coinchii ran over, helping her up and grabbing her hand as they ran.

"Don't let them get away again!"Kiiro shouted.

"You've been pushing it lately Kiiro,"Jade replied harshly.

The three turned into an alley and looked for a back door or something to escape into.

"Before we lost communication, Kaiyen told us to get you and get out of there. He said that when he tried to warn you the AIs were coming you didn't respond so he figured communication was probably jammed so he activated the portal by the entrance,"Shot explained, walking now that they had some form of covering.

"The walk back will take a good amount of time, so we have to avoid them until then,"Miryo added, unusually serious.

"That's providing we know how to get back, this place is huge,"Coinchii said, looking back over his shoulder to make sure no one was there.

"For a moment Kaiyen was able to show me the map earlier, if we keep going this way, we'll eventually hit the main road Miryo was walking down. Of course we'll be wide-open for the AIs to see us, but if we keep heading south as well we should be able to make a dash to the exit before they can get to us...I hope,"Shot said, in a negative tone.

Miryo slowed down and made an effort to grab Coinchii's hand.

"Why are you trying that at a time like this?"Coinchii asked, pulling his hand away.

"Why shouldn't I try? It's not like the AIs are here at the moment,"Miryo pouted.

Coinchii sighed, giving in. He took her hand and continued to walk next her, behind Shot.  
-----------

"Hey, Shot,"Coinchii said suddenly, as they turned down another branch of an alley.

"Yeah?"Shot asked, looking around as he had been.

"Do you, by any chance, know why we can't log out?"Coinchii asked.

He had been curious for awhile, in most occasions with the AIs, and in the Deletion Zone it was impossible to log out.

"Code or Kaiyen would probably have that answer, I don't know myself,"Shot admitted. "In here."

Shot ducked into the back door of a building. Coinchii and Miryo, who was still attached to his hand, followed. A shadow passed across the ground they were just on.

"I wonder why they can't find us,"Miryo pondered.

The three left the building and continue on their path.

"This city is kind of cramped together, that's probably why,"Coinchii explained, proving he wasn't completely hopeless.

"You sound tired,"Miryo said, pushing herself closer to him.

"I am a bit, we were waiting for you all morning,"Coinchii replied.

Shot chuckled causing Coinchii to blush.

"I don't need to here it from you,"Coinchii said, sighing.

"We should be hitting the main road any moment now,"Shot said, changing the subject for Coinchii.

"Already?"

"Yeah. I just want to find the main road so we can tell where we're at. We'll still stick to the alleys for awhile,"Shot explained.

Coinchii acknowledged him. They continued to progress slowly under Shot's orders. The AIs came close to finding them a few times, but didn't have any luck. Aside from the occasional hiding they gradually made it to the front gate, but the AIs seemed to know what was going on already. Two Golems were stationed by it, and on near-by buildings Harpies were standing watch.

"What's the plan?"Coinchii asked, as Shot rejoined them after the recon trip.

"It'll require some luck, but,"Shot began taking a deep breath. "I'll go in first, shooting from afar to attract their attention. One shot per monster should be enough to send them after me. When they head towards my direction, Miryo will take it as a chance to escape. Coinchii, you'll stay by the gate and shout to attract their attention while I duck back into an alley and make my way towards the gate. You run when the Harpies start to get by you. It should be enough time for me to get to the gate as well."

"Why do we need luck?"Coinchii asked.

"We need luck, because if the AIs are there, it'll probably fail,"Shot replied, pulling out his bow and readying an arrow. "Let's go."

Shot ran out of the alley shooting an arrow upon his entrance. Miryo and Coinchii continued down the alley until they came up to the edge of the Deletion Zone. They took a turn and ran out of the alley. Miryo ran out, and Coinchii pulled his sword out.

"Umm...Hey idiots!"Coinchii shouted, not knowing what to say.

Shot darted back into the alley and made his way towards the gate. As expected the Golems were slow, but the three Harpies were closing in fast. Coinchii jumped in the air cutting into one Harpy who got too close. It backed off, injured, but not dead. Another went to strike towards Coinchii, but Coinchii jumped back, dodging it. He countered the next attack.

"We're out of here,"Shot said, running out of a near-by alley and dashing towards the gate.

Coinchii swung his sword in a wide slash, scaring the Harpies back, then turned and ran through the gate. The much appreciated scenery of Mac Anu surrounded them now. Coinchii turned around, looking at the Chaos Gate again.

"Finally,"Kaiyen said into their headsets.

"Should we log out for now?"Shot asked.

"Miryo and Coinchii can do as they please, but Shot, Code wants you your help,"Kaiyen said.

"Right,"Shot replied.

Miryo and Coinchii looked at eachother then began walking towards the bridge of Mac Anu.

"So what do you want to do?"Coinchii asked.

"We haven't gone to a dungeon lately with our friends,"Miryo replied, gazing at the water.

"None of them are online,"Coinchii said, checking his member addresses.

"We could try the Castle Invasion event."  
"What's that?"Coinchii asked.

"You still don't read the forums do you?"Miryo commented with a sweatdrop.

Coinchii scratched the back of his head, innocently.

"It's an event where you invade a dungeon that was made to look like a castle. In the castle they have a bunch of Goblin-type monsters, with a new Goblin monster made for specially for the event,"Miryo explained.

"CC Corp is holding events with the AIs loose, I really don't think that's smart."

"It's a bit risky, but it's actually the best thing to do at a time like this,"someone suddenly said from behind.

Coinchii turned around surprised to see AnakinseZ,

"You see, the events will keep the players' minds off of the problems currently in "The World", and thus makes it easier to cover up what's really going on."

"How can they cover up AIs, when there has already been attacks, people have seen them, and rumors are going around?"Coinchii asked, confused.

"If a parent treats their child with generousity, the odds are in favor of the child believing whatever the parent says, if a parent is neglectful then the child won't take what the parent says at face value. It's like that principle."

"So you're saying that basically that the events are to regain trust and faith in CC Corp so they can lie,"Coinchii paraphrased.

"You don't have to say it in a negative way,"AnakinseZ replied, scratching the back of his head. "But, yeah. Haven't you noticed the increase in events lately?"

"Coinchii doesn't read the forums,"Miryo butted in.

"So what are you two doing today anyways? Code have you working?"AnakinseZ asked.

"We were just given the day off,"Coinchii answered.

"If you aren't doing anything, want to join me for the day?"AnakinseZ offered.

"What are you doing?"

"Not much, because of the events the rumors are starting to die down, so I have free time now,"AnakinseZ answered.

"Meh, I have no problem, how about you Miryo?"Coinchii asked, looking at Miryo over his shoulder.

"Isn't it obvious?"she said as she grabbed around Coinchii's neck for a hug.

"Right,"Coinchii replied sighing.

Coinchii recieved a party invitation from AnakinseZ shortly afterwards. They began to head towards to the Chaos Gate.

"I guess Shot was sent somewhere,"Coinchii muttered, noticing he wasn't there anymore.

The three stopped upon hearing someone chuckle. Zero emerged from behind a corner at the top of the steps.

"Zero?"AnakinseZ casually.

"I have something someone wanted me to tell you,"he said, motioning for AnakinseZ to come up.

AnakinseZ sighed, but complied.

"Zero sure keeps busy,"Coinchii commented, staying back.

"Well he does a lot of errand work for the Game Admin,"Miryo responded.

"And that's how it is,"Zero replied, his voice no longer lowered.

AnakinseZ stood there for a moment in thought.

"You're sure?"AnakinseZ asked.

"I'm just passing along a message."

"And where is the sender of this message anyways?"AnakinseZ asked.

"I'm not supposed to say, you see it was part of our deal,"Zero replied, rocking his head back and forth.

"Coinchii, Miryo, it appears something came up, I have something to attend to,"AnakinseZ said.

"You aren't taking them along?"Zero asked.

"It's too dangerous, since they're after Coinchii, and Miryo wouldn't last long out there,"AnakinseZ replied.

"You might as well, if Jugatsu is in that boy after all,"Zero commented.

"This is something about the AIs, isn't it,"Miryo replied, stepping in front of Coinchii, protectively.

"I guess we've said too much,"Zero commented casually.

"We just got chased by them earlier, what are they up to already?"Coinchii complained.

"Earlier?"AnakinseZ asked.

"Don't worry about it, they ambushed us while in the Deletion Zone, but we managed to escape,"Coinchii answered.

"Deletion Zone? You made it back it in?"Zero asked, a cat-like grin almost forming on his face.

"Code is planning a special teleporter, but meanwhile we just go through manually, that's all,"Coinchii answered.

"Int-er-est-ing,"Zero said, pronouncing each syllable seperately.  
"Is that all?"AnakinseZ asked Zero.

"Hmm? Yeah I believe so,"Zero replied, warping away.

"So where are we going?"Coinchii asked, making his way around Miryo towards AnakinseZ.

"Coinchii,"Miryo groaned.

"What? it's not like we have anything else to do, besides we haven't met up with AnakinseZ in awhile,"Coinchii responded.

"Fine,"she replied obediently, giving in.

"According to Zero, someone asked him told him they saw a suspicious player traveling in a field. They had a character that didn't look like any class."

"What's the field?"Coinchii asked.

AnakinseZ and turned to the Chaos Gate.

"Delta Eternal Wishful Lost Thoughts,"he said.

The three vanished in golden rings, appearing in the grassy field. It appeared to be a normal field. Windmills, grass, hills, everything a field of its type would typically have.

"Nothing appears out of place,"AnakinseZ commented.

"Ouch,"Coinchii said following.

"What's wrong?"Miryo asked.

"Oh, was just some static, I probably have to clean out the headset or something,"Coinchii commented.

AnakinseZ began walking forward to the top of a near by hill. Coinchii and Miryo followed. Even from the imrpboed hight, nothing appeared to be wrong.

"Alright, let's check the dungeon, the rumor is probably false anyways, but we have to check it out,"AnakinseZ commented.

"If it isn't, then we'll just enjoy the dungeon, no worries,"Coinchii said, nodding as the three made their way to the dungeon. A few fights stood between the three and the dungeon, but thanks to AnakinseZ they were over quickly. The dungeon was uneventful as well. A few fights, nothing was out of place. Every room was searched, including the Gott Statue's room. Nothing was out of place.

"It seems it was just a false rumor,"Coinchii said, pocketing his loot.

"Yeah, something is wierd though,"Anakinse said, using a Sprite Ocarina, making them appear the field.

"What is?"Miryo asked.

"As long as I've known Zero he usually never does anything for free, and no one in their right mind would give another player anything to report something like that in place of reporting it themselves. Also Zero really despises people who deal in rumors. Normally he wouldn't care what a normal player would have to say anyways, let alone believe some random person about something such as that,"AnakinseZ explained.

"Maybe someone else was on his character, like a little brother?"Coinchii replied, feeling it was obvious something like that would be the case.

"That's impossible."

"Why?"

"It's not something that's been spread around, but Zero, the character, doesn't have a player,"AnakinseZ replied, making sure no one else was around, even though they were in a field.

"What do you mean? He's...an AI?"Miryo asked.

"Sort of. In the real world he was a genius, but he grew bored with the real world and invented a device in his VR helmet that dumped his mind into his character. He, I guess you would say, made himself an AI,"AnakinseZ explained.

"Are you serious?"Coinchii asked, reluctant to believe such a story.

"It's true. He also knows how to get information from CC Corp. That's why he's a legend in "The World". He doesn't talk to many people, but several people try to talk to him to get information on events, since he can find out about events that aren't even released to the public."

"What's to say he isn't a worker in CC Corp?"Coinchii asked.

"The fact, he's been logged in and active for going on five years now. The fact the last place he logged in at, was at a house. And the fact he doesn't do charity work for Momiri who would be above him in CC Corp,"AnakinseZ explained.

"Oh,"Coinchii replied, being defeated.

"Don't worry about it. It's probably because I know him, so it feels wierd. I'm sure it's nothing,"AnakinseZ said afterwards.

The three returned to Mac Anu.

"With that out of the way, do you think we still have time to do the Goblin thing, Miryo?"Coinchii asked.

"Maybe later, let's get something to eat for now,"Miryo replied, holding her stomach.

"Alright, I'll see you two later,"AnakinseZ responded, nodding.

Ryo removed his headset.

"I guess Zero will do anything if he gets the right amount of pay,"Ryo said, stretching.

"Looks like Code finished his work awhile ago,"Sakura commented, grabbing Ryo's arm as she passed him.

Ryo looked over, seeing Code's chair empty.

"It probably wasn't that big of a task,"Ryo replied.

"Alright, what do they have to eat anyways?"Sakura asked, leaving the room.

* * *

Questions, comments, suggestions, reviews, critisizm, yada yada is always welcome. School's started back up, hopefully my second semester class changes don't prove to be tedious. Two weeks should be still be more than enough time though, so hopefully I can keep up with releases still. 


	27. Chapter 28: Jugatswho?

First off, .hack//Purify has obtained over 1,000 hits Second off, AIC is over 100,000 words(and about 150 or so computer pages) and is well on it's way to getting 1,000 hits. Yay readers. That's all I wanted to say, enjoy.

* * *

His hair had fallen from lack of maintenence. All in all he looked even more like Ryo now, with black hair, and he was paler than usual. His eyes looked dull and dark marks were beneath them. 

"Code?"Ryo asked, staring at him in the hallway.

Code looked at him.

"What happened to you?"Ryo asked.

"Salutations,"Code began, being interrupted by a yawn. "Insufficient time, denied regeneration. Not solid, however highly pluasible. Work is progressing."

Ryo stared at him, lost.

"I barely understand any of that, but I'm guessing because of work you couldn't sleep?"Ryo responded.

"Affirmative."

"So anything you want to share?"

"To confirm the theoretical assumptions I require the center object admists these predicaments. Your inability to utilize the entity within the confines of your psyche is but a conflict. A situation with which my time for sleeping was preoccupied."

Ryo blinked, his mouth dropped slightly open.

_I can't understand what he's trying to say. He's probably too tired to dumb it down for me. _ Ryo thought, his hand on his chin.

"Oh, Code and Ryo, what are you two doing?"Data asked walking by.

"I don't even know myself,"Ryo responded.

"Ryo is inquiring as to my physical appearance of neglegence of sleep,"Code said, slowly turning his head towards to Data.

"Ah, you really should get some sleep though,"Data replied.

"I'll recover after cancelling the theoretical hemi of my insinuations upon the enigma encompassing the entity within Ryo's skull."

"I hate the english language,"Ryo muttered to himself.

"He's saying that he wants to confirm some theories about Jugatsu,"Data translated.

"Ah, that's it,"Ryo said, nodding.

"You really should sleep though, Code. Lack of sleep can hinder your performance,"Data replied, walking over to Code's door.

"Insomnia isn't an assailant of mental prowess. Occasionally the insufficient provision of oxygen compels the psyche to process information at a variant rate. In result the psyche observes and processes information in altered way allowing the possessor to see from different perspectives."

"Code, just go to sleep for now. After you're rested we can go over what you've come up with and sort through it,"Data said, opening the door to Code's room.

"But,"Code objected.

Data coughed, Code sighed, and the arguement ended quickly. Code disappeared as Data closed the door behind him.

"It's amazing Code not only showed signs of being a teenager, but he took orders from someone else,"Ryo said surprised.

A door opened behind them.

"Crap,"Ryo said, looking back.

"Ryo!"Sakura said, running over and jumping up.

"Every morning,"Ryo moaned as Sakura land him with her arms wrapped around his chest.

"Good morning,"she hummed.

"Don't you dare say a word,"Ryo said to Data who turned around chuckling. "I almost got to breakfast by myself,"Ryo complained, getting back up, Sakura still attached.

"If you see Kaiyen at breakfast let him know we're going to meet with Code later,"Data said, walking off.

"Will do,"Ryo said, putting his hands in his pockets walking away, Sakura still attached.

"So what were you guys talking about?"Sakura asked, looking up at Ryo.

"Code's been too busy with work to sleep lately,"Ryo replied.

"And we're having a meeting later?"Sakura asked.

"Not sure about you, but so far it's just Data, Kaiyen, Code, and myself,"Ryo replied.

"If you're going I'm gonna go anyways,"Sakura responded, tightening her grip on Ryo.

"Every morning,"Ryo said under his breath during a sigh.

----------

A knock came on Ryo's door later that day. He put down his work and answered it.

"Hey, Ryo, it's time,"Data said, as Ryo opened the door.

Ryo nodded and followed Data to Code's room. After knocking they went in. As usual his room was a mess, laptops, wires, and desktop computers everywhere. The only area that was free from the overflow of technology was a table in the corner of the room where Code was sitting. By the looks of things he didn't plan on worrying about his hair anymore which made Ryo feel as though he was looking at a smart clone of himself the more time passed, with him looking as he did.

"Kaiyen wasn't in his room, I'll give him a call,"Data said, motioning for Ryo to go over to the table.

"So did you have a good rest?"Ryo asked.

"Yeah, I still feel kinda drowzy, but other than that I'm fine,"Code responded. "Also, Ryo, I've been working on a project as well and I'd like you to test it out when it's finished. First I plan on having a meeting with Skyld and AnakinseZ,"Code continued.

"Of course,"Ryo replied.

Data walked over.

"He'll be here momentarily,"Data replied, taking a seat.

"Before we start, I just want to remind you two, that I've only been able to come up with possible theories. Without the confirmation I can't act on them,"Code said, stretching his arms.

"It's still better than nothing,"Ryo responded, trying to kill time until Kaiyen arrived.

"I should order something to eat,"Code said, putting his thumb on his lips in a thinking gesture.

"That must be Kaiyen,"Data said, responding to sudden knocking.

"Sorry about the wait,"Kaiyen said, walking in after Data opened the door.

"Okay, since the main four people are here we can begin,"Code said, looking around.

"Starting with your theories about Jugatsu would probably the best to start,"Data suggested.

"Of course. This theory is about the the deletion of the first two AIs, Jugatsu, and the map,"Code began. "I've put some thought into it. Whenever you destory a monster in the game it doesn't go to the deletion zone, but it does disappear. So there is more than one way to be removed from the system. I'm thinking something happened to that map aside from being deleted. We can't dismiss the fact something similar to deletion happened though. What I'm trying to say is, something along of the lines of a variation of a deletion must of occured. Which is probably why Twilight has traits from the first two AIs, Dawn and Dusk."

"The boss AI is called Twilight?"Ryo interupted.

"Yeah. Anyways because of this different deletion, if this theory can be proven it'll be impossible to find any physical, well as far as the term goes within "The World", evidence of that map or Jugatsu's original character."

"Confirming that would be difficult if we can't ask Jugatsu directly,"Kaiyen commented.

"Exactly which is one thing I've been working on. It's still in progress, but if I'm doing it correctly, it should be functional with a bit more work, meanwhile I want to have a meeting with AnakinseZ and Skyld. We'll be accessing it from here. I'll keep in contect via transmissions, Kaiyen I want you to go in as Orion for the meeting. Ryo's participation is manditory as usual,"Code finished.

"So we're just going to contact Skyld and AnakinseZ and talk?"Ryo asked.

"Basically."

"Let's go then,"Kaiyen said, standing up.

"The games are already ready,"Data said, pointing to two desktop computers.

Ryo made his way across the room and sat down, putting on the VR Helmet. After submitting his ID and Password he clicked the Login button on the menu.

The golden rings disappeared as Coinchii appeared in Mac Anu.

"Code?"Coinchii asked.

"I'm here,"Code replied, into the headset.

Coinchii went into his member addresses, looking for Skyld and AnakinseZ. After finding them he sent them a message.

"Yo,"AnakinseZ said, coming around a corner at the end of the steps beneath them.

"That was quick,"Coinchii said, going wide-eyed.

"He was probably over there before you messaged him,"Orion commented.

"So Code wants to have that meeting regarding Jugatsu now?"AnakinseZ asked.

Coinchii nodded.

"Alright, I'll send Skyld message, for now let's go to a less populated area,"AnakinseZ said, turning and walking across the bridge.

Coinchii looked up towards the sky, the grid meant to prevent the AIs' access was still in place. Besides training, he didn't get to go on "The World" as much as he used to and when he went on for training he was usually going to a dungeon and spent little to no time in town. He ran to catch up with AnakinseZ who at taken a turn down a small set of steps by the opposite side of the bridge. After going down the steps they passed by a shop and took a turn down a small alleyway.

"I came here that one time when Momiri wanted to meet me, that's right,"Coinchii said aloud, as he entered a small clearing past the alleyway.

"This place has been our little hideout since around the time the previous incident began. The alleyway is so small it doesn't show up on the map, and it doesn't look like a place you would be able to walk through either. Surprisingly no one else knows about it besides us,"AnakinseZ explained.

"AnakinseZ, I have a recovered record of Jugatsu's data from before the event. All data was erased so I can't tell if anything was changed during my attempted recovery, but..."Code said, trailing off.

All of a sudden a player appeared between the three. He had on a black vest that was almost hidden beneath tattered looking bandages. The same bandages covered most of his arms, well what was visible of his arms beneath the black cloak that covered most of his body. The bandages ended as they ran into the black gloves he wore. He had on somewhat baggy black pants which hid the upper part of his also black shoes. The player also had on a pair of sunglasses, similar to what Skyld always wears.

"This is-"Coinchii began.

"Jugastu,"AnakinseZ said, cutting Coinchii off.

"I'm aware of that, but when the events of the previous incident started, did he still resemble this?"Code asked.

AnakinseZ's face was surprised as though he knew what exactly what Code was asking about.

"How did you know about that? I guess, you're not just called a Legendary Hacker for no reason,"AnakinseZ commented.

"I'm afraid, you're over-estimating me, I'm running on pure theory. I wouldn't mind knowing what 'that' is, though,"Code replied.

_Does Code know something he didn't say before? _Coinchii asked himself.

"For a theory you sure do know where to look,"AnakinseZ replied.

Even to Coinchii it was obvious AnakinseZ was trying to get Code to admit something.

"Thanks. Really, though, what is 'that'. It could prove to be helpful,"Code responded casually.

"You don't know 'that' is the bracelet?"AnakinseZ asked, sounding as though he was assuming something wrong.

"Bracelet? What's this bracelet?"

"It didn't have a name and it isn't an actual item. It was given to him by Dawn."

"Given to him by the good AI. Just like those swords Twilight carries, isn't it? I looked for those weapons in "The World"'s database, but nothing came up"

"Those weapons must be useless by this point, otherwise 'Twilight' as you seem to call her probably would've done what she set out to do the first time,"AnakinseZ replied.

"You started without me?"Skyld said walking over.

"Sorry,"Coinchii aplogized.

"You seem to be familiar with this bracelet and those two swords, perhaps you have any information you can share?"Code asked.

"The bracelet was supposed to be the key to ending what we came to call the Twilight Swords Catastrophe, or so we thought. It seemes we misunderstood what we were really supposed to be doing,"AnakinseZ answered.

"The truth is, me and AnakinseZ, used to possess the swords. When Jugatsu got the bracelet from Dawn, we were given the two swords. Dusk was after the swords and as we used the swords Dusk was attracted to them. The bracelet, I guess even to the end of the incident, we couldn't tell what its full powers were,"Skyld followed up.

"And what do you know about the incident with the map that broke off of the normal servers?"Code asked.

"Oh that...we weren't on it at the time it broke away, but before that moment we were fighting Dusk on the map,"Skyld said sullenly.

"So you don't know what happened to Jugatsu or the AIs?"Code asked.

"Unfortunatly no, all we know is that after we left the map, Remial, the ex-Game Admin's ex-assistant, broke off the map after Jugatsu requested it be so. From that point the map remained for a short while before disappearing suddenly."

"You said, even until the end you weren't sure of the bracelet's full power. What are you sure of revolving around the bracelet?"Code asked.

"It's a powerful item. With it, Jugatsu was able to teleport people from anywhere to anywhere, he was able to drain monsters similar to how the data-less harpies drained data, and in the battle against Dusk the bracelet transformed his daggers into these more powerful swords,"AnakinseZ answered.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't that sound like the new AIs? They can teleport, they can make the data-less harpies drain data, and Aqua and Kiiro adjust data, don't they?"Coinchii commented.

"It's a possibility, but I find it doubtful,"Code replied.

"Why?"Coinchii asked, feeling insulted.

"If the AI, Dusk, was after swords, and now has them as Twilight, it's odd he would be concerned about anything else. The only logical conclusion would be that perhaps the bracelet is needed, and if the four new AIs are remnants of the bracelet, then wouldn't Twilight have already obtained the bracelet through that theory?"

"True, but if Jugatsu got rid of the first two AIs on that map place, then everything was deleted at once, you can tell by looking at Twilight that data was mixed up. Maybe there's something about Jugatsu that they need. Like perhaps there's a fifth AI, or maybe he has part of the data that would make up the bracelet."

Everyone stared dumbfounded.

"What?"Coinchii said, feeling awkward. "Is it that bad of an idea?"

"No, it's surprisingly well-thought, and actually it could be possible. It's just..."Code began.

"Just...?"

"Just...you're the one who thought of it,"Code finished.

"What's the hell is that supposed to mean!?"Coinchii shouted.

"It's one theory, but there's still more out there. AnakinseZ, Skyld, anything else you can think of?"

The two suddenly blinked and came out of shock.

"Oh, if it's any help, the bracelet is golden looking and is kind of blocky. It also had a kind of wierd writing on it if I recall,"AnakinseZ said.

"And the two AIs, weren't they originally from some old legend?"Skyld asked.

"Oh yeah, unfortunately I can't think of it though, something about the sun, or something,"AnakinseZ replied, scratching the back of his head.

"So this bracelet probably wiped out the map, AIs, and himself in the process. Of course we'll have to get information on what happened after the map broke away from Jugatsu himself. Anyways, you two have proved to be a big help. It seems this bracelet is a key item in this problem. Unfortunately I'm not yet ready for the next task, Coinchii. If AnakinseZ and Skyld don't mind, why don't you ask them questions about Jugatsu so that you can better know what the person inside you is like. I'll keep your idea in mind, and as for the old legend, you two, I'll have some of my people look into it,"Code said, a beep followed his statement.

"I guess he's gone,"Coinchii said, looking up, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to see Code.

"What the hell was the point of me coming here?"Orion asked, putting his arms behind his head.

"Don't worry, I get sent to do pointless things all the time,"Coinchii said, looking back, mouthing the words 'Deletion Zone'.

Orion logged out.

"So, it seems Jugatsu was an impressive person. Seems he left quite an impact on "The World". I can't help but feel like I'm beneath his shadow,"Coinchii commented.

"Each person has their own story, you know. Don't worry too much about Jugatsu's impact, you'll be leaving yours as well,"AnakinseZ responded.

"How old was he anyways, he sounds really responsible, he must have been in his late 20's or possible early 30's,"Coinchii said, folding his arms.

"You're 15, aren't you, Coinchii?"Skyld asked.

"Yeah, almost 16, why?"Coinchii replied.

"Well, Kaishin, the person who played Jugatsu...Well I guess he **is** Jugatsu now, but when he lived in the real world he was 15 as well,"Skyld replied, scratching the back of his head.

"He was 15 too?"Coinchii replied, insulted.

"Everyone matures at different levels, besides he really wasn't all that mature. He was pretty anti-social, he would often say he hated the real world , I'm sure someone mature wouldn't say that,"AnakinseZ said to comfort Coinchii.

"How old are you guys anyways?"Coinchii responded.

They looked at eachother.

"Skyld's a college student,"AnakinseZ answered.

"College? The last incident took place a few years ago, so you were around my age to,"Conchii moaned, with his head drooping.

"Oh, so Code said he had some task for you?"AnakinseZ responded, trying to change the subject.

"Huh, oh yeah, but I don't know what it is yet,"Coinchii answered.

"Based off of what we were just talking about it's probably something Jugatsu related,"Skyld said.

"I just noticed,"AnakinseZ commented.

"Noticed?"Skyld asked.

"Code forgot to remove the Jugatsu image,"AnakinseZ said, walking over and poking it.

"Oh yeah,"Skyld said walking over as well.

Coinchii walked over and looked at Jugatu's face.

"Hey, my right eye, is it still gray and red?"Coinchii asked.

"You're left eye is gray with red streaks if that's what you meant, you're right eye is blue,"Skyld answered.

"Whatever,"Coinchii pouted.

He looked backed at Jugatsu's face. He had to look at an angle, but Jugatsu's eyes were both blue, which as a result made Coinchii curious as to why his left eye, the symbol of their merging, was different than both of their eyes. It was already confirmed that Jugatsu was in him, but the eye part was starting to confuse Coinchii.

"Oh, that's right, the sunglasses, they're a special item aren't they?"Coinchii asked.

"Yeah, why?"Skyld replied.

"What did he look like before he had them?"Coinchii asked.

Skyld looked at AnakinseZ who shook his head.

"You two don't know?"

"Well he found the sunglasses in one of the first dungeons he ever did, so that appearance I guess was practically his original form. I suppose he's the only one who knows what his first appearance was, if he even remembers that is,"Skyld answered.

"You can't go through CC Corp's computer and find out?"Coinchii asked.

"I don't exactly think they'll allow you to access a player database over something like that, besides all of his data was deleted, even data from before the incident,"AnakinseZ commented.

"Then how does he still exist?"Coinchii asked.

"Because he's in you. Probably because of his state being similar to the AIs' his information was jumbled so he probably had information after the false deletion, but because it was different the system didn't delete it, I guess,"AnakinseZ commented.

"Why the hell is everyone around me always smarter than me. I'm lucky to have an occasional smart moment,"Coinchii complained.

Coinchii casually turned behind him, but no one was there.

"What is it?"Skyld asked, leaning against a wall.

"Oh, the real world, I guess I have to go, see ya,"Coinchii said, waving.

He logged out.

Ryo took off his helmet and turned around.

"You're curious as to what I was doing, correct?"Code asked.

"Huh, of course, I'm usually curious whenever you do anything,"Ryo answered.

Code dropped seven different stacks of paper.

"What's this?"Ryo asked.

"The data that makes up your character,"Code said.

"But there are different sized, all of these are just for my character?"Ryo said.

There were three thin stacks, two slightly less thin stacks, and two bigger stacks.

"This first one,"Code began, picking up a stack that had three sheets of paper,"this first stack, is the data of Coinchii when you first made him. The other two thin stacks are Oblivion's data when he was first made, and Mohi's player data. All of them are three pages long which is normal."

"What about the other four?"

"One of the five page stacks is of Mohi's player data, and the second is Oblivion's data before you used him. It's natural as a player progresses and gets more involved with all the activities, that their data becomes larger, but these other stacks..."Code said, putting down the stacks he was holding in a pile.

"They're a lot larger,"Ryo commented.

"The first one is Coinchii's data, when you use him. It's over 30 pages total,"Code said, looking at Ryo.

"That's Coinchii's data? Why's it so large?"Ryo asked, wide-eyed.

"The second stack is Oblivions, it's 25 pages, but you don't use him as often as Coinchii,"Code began.

"Why are they so large?"

"Because of Jugatsu. The VR Helmets access your brain, which is why you can move so freely. It takes data from your brain. Jugatsu is data that gets taken into the game. When you aren't logged in, the character data is normal, but whenever you log into any character, Oblivion, Coinchii, or even if you logged into Mohi, the VR helmet transfers the data of Jugatsu which expands the data greatly,"Code explained.

"Oh, but still it's over six times the size of Mohi's data,"Ryo said.

"I've been making an attempt of using the natural data increase and the modifications to data when Jugatsu takes over. He's only taken over twice so we don't have much data. The goal, though, is to possibly find a way to alter a VR Helmet so that we can get Jugatsu to come out whenever we please. I haven't had any luck yet, and since it's going to directly affect your brain we can't do a trial and error run because there's no telling what will happen if it fails. If the time comes when you want to try anyways, if I feel it's worth the risk, I'll allow you to try it. However, if that time doesn't come, then it'll remain unused until I feel it's going to work with a 100 chance."

"Right,"Ryo said, nodding.

"For now,"Code said, his face returning to it's usual, casual style.

"Huh?"Ryo asked.

"Get out of here, you're missing training aren't you?"Code said, walking through a maze of laptops.

"Right,"Ryo grumbled.

* * *

Reviews, comments, critizism, so on welcome. And since it's been awhile since I last remember having a disclaimer, I don't own .hack// anything besides these two stories, I don't own "The World", nor do I own Cyber Connect/CC Corp, I do however own the words in the story, chacters in the story, and story plots. 


	28. AIC Shorts 1

I'm sorry to say, but I wasn't ready this week. I have to make it up somehow. sweatdrop Anyways just so I'm not dead, awhile back when I had some extra time I prepared this in case just such an event should happen. Enjoy._  
_

* * *

_Code and Ryo walk onto a stage, pick up scripts and sit in their chairs. They begin to read the scripts._

Ryo:As you all know, with school and work, it gets difficult to find free time in the day.

Code:Yes, and because of this chapters don't always make it out on time.

Ryo:Seeing ahead in all his wisdom...The hell is this?  
_Ryo reads over the script_

Ryo:Screw that, kissing up to himself, does this author have no shame?sweatdrop

Code:Eh...whatever let's just introduce the situation.

Ryo:Okay, it's like this the author wasn't able to finish his chapter and in an attempt to satisfy the readers wrote this.

Code:More or less. That being said, shall we began? This segment involves the first time our first four characters met eachother. The first story is title 'Suichi's Meeting'.

It was the first day of middle school. Ryo, a new sixth grader, stepped off the bus and looked at the large school. No more little kid Ryo anymore. He whistled as he walked to the cafeteria to get breakfast before school started. He liked the school uniform in middle school better than his elementary school. Instead of dress clothes the uniform was a blue shirt and blue jeans, more comfortable than last year.

"Hey, who's your homeroom teacher?"Ryo overheard someone say as he sat down with his cereal.

"I have room 24, building three,"someone answered.

"Ah, I heard that teacher was mean,"the first kid replied.

Ryo took the last bite of his cereal. _These small plastic bowls aren't enough for someone who's now in middle school _he thought to himself, full of pride.

He pulled out his own schedule, which had been sent in the mail over summer. He threw out his trash and walked outside, reading his schedule. His homeroom was in building four, room 18. After reaching the middle of the courtyard, he looked around and minus the cafeteria and gym, there were five buildings.

_Which one is building four? _he thought to himself. He walked over to one building and looked at the sign. On it was '4-12'.

"I suppose this is building four then,"Ryo said aloud, looking at his schedule.

He walked along the path and came up to a sign with '4-18'. He looked inside and saw a few kids sitting down already. He walked over to an empty side on the side of the room. On the board the teacher's name was written down.

"Mr. Smith,"Ryo read aloud,"That's such a bland name."

"And what's yours?"someone asked in a deep voice.

Ryo went wide-eyed and let out a squeek.

"Ryo Kuinichi,"Ryo replied nervously.

"Ryo... Crewineaje?"the man replied, looking at Ryo strangly

"Hey I didn't butcher your name. Don't butcher mine!"Ryo responded at the man who he figured was Mr. Smith.

"Fine then, what's my name?"

"It's Mr.Smith,"Ryo replied.

"No...that's the teacher's name...I'm the principal, boy."

Ryo went wide-eyed. The door opened and a scrawny looking man in a brown suit walked in.

"Ah, oh, sir, what are you doing here?"he asked.

"Ah, Smith, just walking around seeing all the new sixth graders,"the principal replied.

"Any of them look like troublemakers?"Mr.Smith replied jokingly.

"This kid looks like he could be one,"the principal replied looking down at Ryo.

"I'm not a trouble maker!"Ryo argued back.

"Is that so?"the principal asked him.

"I'm not,"Ryo repeated.

The principal let out a chuckle and walked away, saying something to the teacher.

"You stood up to the principal, wow,"one of the kids said walking over, two others were with him.

"Yeah, he's just some old man,"Ryo replied with a show-off grin.

"Are you sure you should be saying that about the principal?"a girl asked him.

"What? Nothings gonna happen, I'm just saying the truth,"Ryo replied.

_Ah, I'm already becoming popular and school hasn't even started yet! _Ryo thought to himself.

"What's your name?"one of the kids asked.

"Ryo Kuinichi,"Ryo replied, proudly.

"Coon...ecchi?"one of the kids replied slowly.

"Ecchi is perverted stuff!"the girl replied.

Ryo blushed.

"Its Kuinichi. Coo-een-eech-ee!"Ryo replied.

"You're loud..."someone replied.

Everyone looked over at a kid who was resting his head in his arms on the desk.

"Who are you?"Ryo asked, insulted.

"I'm trying to sleep. Shut up,"he replied.

Ryo stuck his tounge out and turned towards the front of the class.

"Thanks,"the kid said, returning to his sleep.

"You aren't welcome,"Ryo muttered.

After all the initial papers from the school had been handed out and attendance had been taken the teacher had them do a self-introduction, After they reached the M's, the kid who was previously sleeping went.

"My name is Suichi Mohi,"he replied yawning, his eyes half shut. My favorite color is...I don't care. My favorite food is probably sandwiches. My hobby is drawing."

He paused to yawn once again before continuing.

"Things I like are, my pets, easy-going days, and games. My dislikes are things that get in the way of my likes and the kid who wouldn't shut up this morning."

"I dislike you too!"Ryo replied.

Suichi looked over at him then continued.

"Something about me...would probably be my hair. I don't have to cut it, but it doesn't grow,"he finished, his haircut similar to his older self's version.

"Any questions for Suichi?"Mr.Smith asked, as he had with everyone else.

No one had any questions. The game finished and Mr.Smith let everyone do as they pleased until the bell rang. Everyone went off to their first class; Ryo after some trouble managed to find his. He walked in after the bell, but since it was the first day the teacher didn't care. As in most classes that day they did another 'bonding' activity, this one was with a partner though. The teacher had everyone write their name on a piece of paper so she could pick partners at random. She finally announced Ryo's name after some groups had been paired off.

"And Ryo's partner will be,"she said pulling out another piece of paper,"Suichi Mohi."

"Him!?"Ryo complained.

"Do you know him? I guess you're lucky then,"the teacher replied before moving on.

Suichi walked over and placed his seat on the opposite side of Ryo's desk. They silently stared at eachother.

"Let's just get this done,"Suichi said, finally giving in.

The project was a chart where you had to various facts about a person. As reluctant as he was, Ryo cooperated and worked on the project. After his first class he went to the next one which was in the gym so it was easier to find. He sat down on the stands by the teacher and waited for the bell to start class.

After it finished ringing the teacher handed them a piece of paper explaining various things for their parents, and then went straight to the 'funnest' thing about how she ran class. Her 'funnest' thing was how she had everyone in pairs to do everything. And through bitter irony Suichi was once again in his class and was also his partner for the rest of the year in gym. Since nothing was really planned for the first day the teach let the kids play games.

"You know...irony sucks,"Ryo said to Suichi.

"We agree on one thing,"Suichi replied, pulling out a notebook and pencil.

"For future reference what are your next two class for today?"Ryo asked him, curious as to how many class they had together.

"Spanish, 1-12 and Math, 3-14,"he answered.

"Okay so it's just these two classes for today,"Ryo replied, sighing,"And tomorrow?"

"You ask a lot of questions,"Suichi said bluntly.

A sweatdrop fell down Ryo's head.

"That doesn't answer my question you know,"Ryo responded.

Suichi pulled the paper out of his notebook and crumpled it up.

"It wasn't meant to,"Suichi replied, starting another doodle.

"You're too easy-going, you know,"Ryo said.

"And you're too hyper,"Suichi countered.

"Iunno, but if we have to be partners for everything then I guess we better try to get along,"Ryo said.

"You sound pretty mature for your age, you know,"Suichi commented.

Ryo grinned.

"I get that a lot,"he replied, chuckling.

Suichi paused on his drawing.

"I take that back...you're about normal for your age,"he said before continueing.

Ryo:Ah the good ol' days. Back when I was getting breakfast made for me.

Code:At least there's been some change in your maturity in the last four years, even if it isn't that much.

Ryo:Did you just say something?

Code:Nope. So Ryo do you want to introduce the next story. When you met your lover?

Ryo:Shut the hell up, Code.

_Code chuckles_

Ryo:Right, so the this story is called 'Sakura's Meeting'...Wait that's the same title as before almost. God this author is lazy.

"Ugh, I hate math homework, why is there so much of it?"Ryo pouted as he ate lunch on a table in the courtyard.

"I really don't get math homework that often,"Suichi replied, eating his sandwich.

"And the end of the semester is coming up,"Ryo groaned.

"Yeah, middle school exams are probably worse than elementary ones."

"We had semester exams in elementary school?"Ryo asked.

"You're joking, right?"

"I don't care to remember."

A sweatdrop fell down Suichi's head.

"Eh, by the way, Ryo, do you know any blonde haired girls?"Suichi asked.

Ryo looked at him puzzled at the random question.

"I can't say I do..."Ryo answered,"Why?"

"Hmm there's a girl two tables over who's been staring at you this whole time,"Suichi answered.

Ryo went to look behind him, but Suichi grabbed his shirt and sighed.

"You don't look back there, don't you know the rules?"

"What rules...and what are the rules for?"Ryo asked.

"Come on Ryo, it's common sense if a girl stares at you she likes you, if you look back then she'll turn away,"Suichi answered.

"It is?"Ryo responded with another question.

Suichi sighed again.

"It's a pain explaining things to you, you know."

"I don't see the big deal about her liking me or not,"Ryo pouted.

"Listen we're in middle school now, everyone knows guys are supposed to like girls now."

"Says who?"Ryo asked, looking at Suichi.

"Says people, like my big brother."

"You have a brother?,"Ryo asked.

"Yeah, he's 17 now, but that's not the point. The point is you can get a girlfriend."

"I want one?"Ryo asked.

Suichi couldn't think of a response this time.

"Well...I suppose it's your choice...but you're...supposed to...I think,"Suichi answered,"Well, my brother said after elementary school you grow up and girls are appealing."

"Appealing...like peeling an apple?"Ryo asked.

Suichi sighed.

"You're hopeless."

Ryo looked back at the girl, expecting her to turn away, but he didn't see anyone move out of the ordinary.

"Are you sure someone was staring at me?"Ryo asked.

"I thought there was,"Suichi responded.

After school Ryo met up with Suichi again.

"I'm finally getting used to moving between classes, but it still feels wierd,"Ryo said said, as he got on the bus with Suichi.

"Yeah, having a single desk you could put your books and stuff in was a lot easier than carrying it around,"Suichi replied, getting into the seat first.

"You could've gotten a locker, you know,"Ryo suggested, getting in second.

"Yeah, but I know some people in my classes in who keep getting late. Ryo, that girl is staring at you again,"Suichi said looking forward.

Ryo looked towards the front of the bus and someone duck down.

"I am a pretty popular guy, it's not surprising,"Ryo said, grinning.

"Right,"Suichi replied sarcasticly.

"I'm serious,"Ryo pouted.

"She's really getting annoying though,"Suichi commented.

"Hey, blonde hair girl!"Ryo stood up and shouted.

"Ryo, you idiot!"Suichi shouted, pulling him back down.

The blonde haired girl's head popped back up.

"Why don't you sit with us?"Ryo asked, waving.

Suichi sighed.

"Me?"the girl asked.

Ryo nodded and the girl walked back and sat next to Ryo.

"You're face is all red,"Ryo commented, as he moved over.

The girl smiled nervously and turned her face away.

"So, I'm Ryo, and this Suichi, what's your name?"Ryo asked.

"Sa--Sakura,"she replied quietly.

"Girrrrrlfriend,"Suichi whispered, but was ignored.

"When do you get off?"Ryo asked.

"The stop after yours,"she replied, still blushing.

"Hey...you're really red, are you sick or something?"Ryo asked.

There was a silence; Sakura, from nervousness and Suichi from shock at Ryo's stupidity.

"No Ryo, she isn't sick,"Suichi answered.

"You sure?"Ryo asked, putting his hand on her forehead.

She went wide-eyed once touched.

"She doesn't feel sick. I don't think she is,"Ryo said.

"R-...Ry-...Ryo?"Sakura said quietly.

"Yeah?"Ryo asked.

"I...I...-"she was cut-off as the bus stopped sending her and Ryo into the back of the seat in front of them.

"Whiplash,"Suichi said with a smirk.

"Are we at my stop already?"Ryo asked, standing up.

"Yep,"Suichi answered.

"Ah, I'll see you guys later,"Ryo replied, grabbing his backpack and running out of the bus.

Ryo:Sakura used to be shy? Since when?

Code:Well she probably stayed distant from you as a kid so you never became friends, and once she began 'growing' became more out-going, which made you back down.

Ryo:Wha?

Code:Nevermind...  
Ryo:Anyways...We have one more story for this segment of AIC Shorts, and I'm guessing it's called, "Dylan's Meeting".

Code:It is.

Ryo:And I'm also guessing it's about when me and Suichi met Dylan.

Code:It is.

Ryo:I'm so smart.

Code:No you aren't.

"So you ready for the school fair, Suichi?"Ryo asked they walked off the bus.

Ryo still wasn't exactly sure what a school fair was, but he did know it meant there was going to be a half day and no classes. The homeroom teacher yesterday had told the students not bring any work to school.

"Yeah, you can finally meet my friend from my other classes,"Suichi answered.

"Friend? You mean the one that you said was 'not an idiot loudmouth' like someone you know?"Ryo replied, still oblvious to the fact that when Suichi said that he was referencing Ryo.

"Yeah, Dylan,"Suichi replied.

They reported to homeroom, the teacher took attendance and then the students were released to the fields in the back of the school.

"Hmm, so where is he?"Ryo asked, looking around at the students that were already out.

"He's probably over there,"Suichi replied pointing at a large gathering of girls.

"Dylan is a girl!?"Ryo asked in shock.

"No, he's probably in there though,"Suichi replied.

"So he's gay?"Ryo asked tilting his head to the side some.

"No, he'-...I don't think he's gay,"Suichi said, putting his hand on his chin.

He shook his head dismissing the thought.

"Let's go,"Suichi ordered, pulling Ryo into the crowd of girls.

They managed to make their way in and saw a kid, kind of on the short side, and skinny. Short, combed down hair, and bored eyes. It was as though he didn't even realize the girls chattering in a circle around him, he was so apathetic.

"Hey Suichi,"he replied lowly.

"Heyo, Dylan. This is Ryo. Ryo, this is Dylan,"Suichi said introducing the two.

"Hi,"Ryo said.

Dylan just stared at him and there was an ackward silence, minus the girls surrounding them.

"He's...quiet,"Suichi replied, scratching the back of his head.

"Oh, I know, let's check out the stuff we can do,"Ryo suggested, smiling at Dylan.

Dylan just stared at him, with bored eyes. Suichi was watching with tension.

"Umm..."Ryo breathed.

He blinked a few times, while Dylan hadn't blinked once. This was needless to say, very ackward.

Suichi laughed nervously before saying, "Let's go somewhere else."

Suichi and Ryo forced their way out of the girls, then turned around waiting for Dylan. The girls scattered creating a path for Dylan to walk out of.

"That's not fair,"Ryo pouted.

They began to walk over towards a water slide, Suichi in front, but he stopped shortly afterwards. They continued to walk again, but stopped.

"What's wrong,"Ryo asked.

Suichi merely pointed behind him. Ryo looked and saw the girls still walking behind.

"Are those your girlfriends?"Ryo asked, with a sweatdrop.

Dylan stared at him.

"If you're supposed to have a girlfriend in the sixth grade, then he must be like a 26th grader,"Ryo muttered.

"That idea is so flawed,"Suichi retorded.

The began to walking again, the girls still following.

"Is he famous or something?"Ryo asked.

"No, why?"Suichi asked.

"Those girls keep following him like a bunch of fans or something..."

"Fan girls?"Suichi asked.

"Yeah, that'll work,"Ryo said.

Ryo sighed.

"I really can't stand them, can't you do something?"Ryo asked Dylan.

Dylan just looked at Ryo.

"Stop looking at me all the time!"Ryo shouted.

Dylan kept staring.

"Can't you at least talk to me,"Ryo muttered.

"You're different than the others,"Dylan mumbled.

"Huh?"Ryo asked.

"You don't look at me like other people,"Dylan said.

"Look at you?"Ryo asked.

"Yeah, didn't I tell you, Ryo?"Suichi asked.

"Tell me what?"

"I didn't?"Suichi asked.

"I guess not."

"Well, Dylan has this thing where he can notice small things about the way people act towards him, and he's kind of picky about who he talks to,"Suichi explained.

"That's stupid,"Ryo replied.

Suichi scratched the back of his head nervously.

Ryo:The origin of where I started using 'fan girls' and when I met Dylan.

Code:Well, to all the readers out there, I'm Code.

Ryo:And I'm Ryo.

Code:Thanks for joining us.

Ryo:Hopefully the author has the next chapter ready next release date.  
_Ryo and Code stand up and walk off the stage._

* * *

Not gonna say reviews and what not welcome, since this is basically a time filler, but if you want to leave a suggestion or tell me to manage my time better feel free to. 


	29. Chapter 29:Oblivion vs Exion

I was worried I wouldn't be able to get this chapter up in time with the way things were going with my internet, but thankfully I managed. Enjoy.

* * *

"Next Friday, Delta Secretive Absolute Pendant."

"What's this about?"

"It's that Oblivion guy."

"Oblivion?"

"Yeah, every now and then he puts up a challenge date and anyone who wants can go and challenge him at the location. He's supposed to give a rare item to anyone who can defeat him."

"He sounds obnoxious."

"His current record is 48 wins 0 losses."

"That's not too bad."

"This next person seems interesting,"Kaiyen said, reading the BBS's replies to the next Oblivion challenge date.

"What's it say?"Data asked, drinking a bottle of water.

"If he wins two more matches I'll challenge him."

"You're Exion!"

"Exion?"

"Man, you need to read into the PvP world. Exion is a PKK with a current record of 149 kills and 0 losses."

"Exion the third best PK/PKK in "The World""

"Why would someone with that record challenge this guy?"

"Oblivion is said to be a scythe wielding class."

"Huh, that class sucks, I bet he was fighting weak people."

"Hey! He defeated me two challenges ago, I'm a level 52 Blade master."

"Maybe you suck as well."

"The rest is pretty boring,"Kaiyen said, exiting the BBS.

"I'm surprised CC Corp hasn't done anything to fix the scythe wielding class. I mean even if they did remove the free-hand damage, all Ryo has to do is go melee with Oblivion until his opponant is forced into a vulnerable spot, then he just finishes them off with the scythe,"Data replied.

"Well if he defeats this Exion guy, Oblivion will be pretty famous, plus it means Ryo will prove whether or not he's getting better against others who can think, unlike monster."

"Ryo and Sakura are taking their weekly test right now, aren't they?"Data asked, leaning back in the recliner.

"I believe so,"Kaiyen answered, closing the curtains to his room to block the sun.

"Being idle sure is boring,"Data commented, sighing.

----------

Ryo scratched his head, making another mark on the answer sheet.

"How the hell am I supposed to know these names, this isn't going to help me in the future,"Ryo moaned.

"Keep working,"some middle aged man barked from the doorway.

"Yes, sir,"Ryo replied, dropping his head on the desk. "I hate history."

----------

"Hey, Kaiyen,"Data said, casually.

"Huh?"Kaiyen responded.

Data rolled his head over to look at Kaiyen.

"That Exion guy...since we have nothing to do, want to look into his character?"

Kaiyen, who had been laying on his bed, thought for moment.

"I suppose we have nothing else to do."

With a sigh Kaiyen got up and walked over to his laptop. Data slowly forced himself up and got into the chair next to Kaiyen's. After the computer started up Kaiyen opened up a few programs and began typing something.

"Exion, E-x-i-o-n?"Kaiyen asked.

"Yeah."

"Let's see, he's a fighter, level 75, that's 15 higher than Oblivion."

"Yeah, but in a player verse player match levels are only so important, 20 levels is probably where a match can be decided by statistics alone,"Data commented.

"It seems he has a one-of-a-kind weapon."

"Oh?"

Kaiyen hit a few buttons.

"Skeleton Fist. According to the description it was a prize in an event. The user absorbs 50 of the damage dealt."

"So he doesn't have to be good at all, with a weapon like that it's like an endless amount of life since his class of choice is built for speed and power."

"He's online, shall we check out how he fights?"Kaiyen asked.

"Sure,"Data answered.

Kaiyen hit the enter button and "The World" popped up in a video viewer.

"He's female,"Kaiyen said, clearing his throat.

"So it seems."

----------

Exion appeared in the desert field. Her hair was long, falling to her waist in the back, and in the front her bangs were split into two which fell to the shoulder. She wore a black leather tank-top which left a lot of her pale skin exposed. Her lower garments consisted of black shorts which reached half way to her knees and black sandals. On her arms were two gauntlets which reached from just below her elbows to the end of her fingers where they wrapped around and became claws. The gauntlets were made of what resembled crushed bones.

"There you are,"someone said, pushing themself out from beneath the sand.

Four others followed in suit, and as though zombies, they appeared from beneath the ground, encircling Exion.

"More angry PKers?"she asked with a grin.

Her voice was surprisingly innocent sounding.

"Maybe, or maybe we just feel like breaking your 149 winning streak,"he grinned.

As if through a hidden command the five suddenly reached to their sides grabbing their daggers.

"Lucky for you guys, I'm saving my 150th kill for Oblivion, so I'll just settle with taking you guys to an inch of your life,"she said, getting into a bear-styled fighting stance.

The first one ran up and slashed down with one dagger but Exion had already moved out of the way and grabbed the twinblade's wrists.

"What are you waiting for, get her,"the twinblade ordered.

Exion pulled the twinblade closer while kneeing him in the stomach. He was pushed to the ground and crawled back. Two of the other four had approached her but hesitated. She turned her head which was enough to get them to back off.

----------

"Five player killers are hesitant to even try and attack. How sad,"Kaiyen commented.

"They probably aren't very high level or something,"Data said.

----------

"Well? I already said I don't plan on killing you. Are you worried about wasting items then?"she asked, looking around.

"If she's the third best, how are we going to beat the other two, boss?"one of the twinblades asked.

"Retreat for now,"the talkative twinblade replied.

The five disappeared in golden rings.

"After Oblivion I should try taking on the second best,"Exion said, holding her chin.

----------

"So, what's your opinion?"Kaiyen asked.

"We should probably let Ryo know, his training appears to be attracting more attention than we hoped for,"Data answered.

"I'll let you take care of that, I'll get her player information ready,"Kaiyen said, beginning to work with the laptop.

----------

"Even after all the studying I did this week that test was a pain. When the hell will we be working on the AIs, I need an excuse,"Ryo complained to himself as he walked out of the testing room.

_It's been a little over a week since I last did anything related to Jugatsu or the AIs _Ryo though as he walked around a corner.

"You could at least wait for me,"Sakura scolded, running after Ryo.

"I'm not in the mood, Sakura,"Ryo sighed.

"What's wrong?"she asked, respecting his fatigue and settling with walking next to him.

"My grades last week could have been better, but with all the AI related stuff we were doing I couldn't help it. I figured since this week had been slow I would've been able to do better, but..."Ryo finished, the rest being obvious.

"You can always come to my room and study with me,"Sakura said, hiding a grin.

Ryo sighed."I already told you, I know if I go over I'll end up getting less studying done than if I study by myself."

"Ryo,"Data said walking up.

"Yeah?"Ryo asked, turning from Sakura.

"There's something interesting Kaiyen and I want you to see."

"Is it AI related?"

"No, it's training related, but...It'd be easier just to show you, come on,"Data said.

"Can I come?"Sakura asked, scooting closer to Ryo.

"Sure,"Data answered.

----------

"This is "The World"'s third best PK?"Ryo asked, looking at the information on Kaiyen's laptop.

"Well, technically a PKK, but I suppose PKK's fall under the ranking of PK as well,"Data said.

"And she wants to challenge Ryo?"Sakura asked.

"As soon as he get two more wins, and providing he doesn't lose,"Kaiyen answered.

"So what do you suggest I do?"Ryo asked the two.

"Well, I would suggest waiting for us to get a few videos of her fighting style, ones better than the one we just showed you. This way it would be easier to fight her. Your level could be a problem because she's quite a bit stronger, but if you can out-fight her then it shouldn't be a problem,"Kaiyen said.

"Isn't that kind of cheap?"Ryo responded.

"It's better than going in blind, besides if you beat her then you'll have to be given the title as the third strongest PK which would mean stronger enemies would be out to fight you and as a result your training will improve by far,"Data answered.

"True, but if Ryo can barely win after being given this big of an advantage it means when others challenge him he won't have the advantage so he'll probably lose,"Sakura countered.

"We'll worry about that when the time comes. Besides this is training, Ryo already knows the AIs well enough to fight them. Unlike the AIs, he trains so while Ryo is becoming more skilled the AIs are using the same tactics. I mean, when is the last time we've seen anything new?"Data recountered.

"They still seem to be growing stronger and stronger though. So even though they haven't come up with any knew tactics, Ryo has to do more than learn some new techniques and raise Coinchii's level,"Kaiyen said, interrupting the two.

"Anyone would lose moral with you people talking,"Ryo said, head drooping.

"Would you rather us say 'You can't lose' then have no drive to prove us wrong?"Kaiyen asked.

"Honestly, I'd prefer having the backing of at least my friends,"Ryo grumbled.

Kaiyen patted him on the back.

"I'll tell you what, if you can beat Exion I'll see if I can have Code go easier when it comes to your grades, but if you lose I'll make sure Code increases your training,"Kaiyen said.

"No fair, you're attacking my weak point,"Ryo groaned.

"This is coming from Mr. Gifted,"Sakura joked.

"It isn't hard being gifted,"Ryo protested.

"So, yes or no, Ryo?"Kaiyen asked.

Ryo closed his eyes and thought for a moment.

"I guess,"he answered.

"It's settled then. Data you take care of Ryo's arrangements, I'll work on preparing Ryo the next two days until his fight with Exion."

"Will do,"Data replied casually leaving the room.

"You two log into "The World", after I set a tracker on Exion I'll join you so we can begin some intensive training,"

"Intensive..."Ryo grumbled, being pulled out of the room by Sakura.

_I feel like a puppet, being the main character is for the birds. If I was Suichi I could be relaxing at home...or actually I think they're at school now, it's better than being here at times, _Ryo thought, continueing the complaining in his head.

"I remember hearing about when you first came here,"Sakura said suddenly.

"Huh?"Ryo replied at the random statement.

"Everyone said you were all serious and that all you were thinking about was beating the AIs,"Sakura continued.

Ryo began blushing and looked away, but fell over when Sakura stopped dragging him by his jacket.

"It's because you were worried about us, right?"

Ryo was getting more and more red."Yeah, well,"he replied, embaressed.

"I remembered saying that it must have been the wrong person because my Ryo was an empty-headed idiot."

_Low moral, tired, now I feel bad, and I'm being insulted, _Ryo griped in his head, getting up.

"Then when I finally met up with you when I came here it turned out that you were serious about something for once. It made me feel good."

"Sakura, this embaressing enough, can you just skip to the point?"Ryo asked, beat red from embaressement.

"You don't know how to set the mood do you?"Sakura scolded, turning to him.

A sweatdrop fell down Ryo's head.

"Anyways, the point is, lately you've been losing your drive. I think everyone has noticed it, do you want us getting injured again?"

"Sakura..."Ryo responded, feeling like a jerk.

"Exactly, you don't, stop complaining all the time, then. Although it's one of the cute things you do now isn't really the time for it,"she said, somewhat angry.

_Is she being serious or not? Bah, women... _Ryo thought to himself.

"I supposed you're right,"Ryo said, closing his eyes.

Code appeared around a near-by corner laughing.

"That was entertaining,"he said, his laugh becoming a chuckle.

Ryo began blushing again.

"Well, don't let me keep you, I was informed by Data what's going on, I'll put a hold on training for the next two days so Kaiyen can train you,"Code said, walking away and still chuckling.

"Why did someone have to hear something that cheezy?"Ryo mumbled under his breath.

He sighed and continued towards the computer room, followed by Sakura.

----------

Oblivion appeared as the surrounding golden rings vanished.

"Something happen on the way to the computer room?" Orion asked.

"Nothing major,"Oblivion said, looking away.

"Has the grid prevented any attacks?"Miryo asked, looking up at the sky.

"Oh, well there hasn't been any attacks in town since it's been created, at least nothing has been reported that is,"Orion replied.

"Okay, shall we begin training?"Skyld asked appearing in front of the chaos gate with AnakinseZ.

"Huh?"Oblivion asked.

"I asked AnakinseZ and Skyld if they could help, since they know you're Coinchii also,"Orion answered.

"Oh yeah, Suichi, er, Mohi and the others don't know about Oblivion do they?"Oblivion said.

"Only those two, the people in CC Corp, and the people on our team know,"Orion replied. "First thing is first, I'll be in party with Oblivion, you three party up, and let's decide on a map."

"Do we know any maps that would be void of monsters?"Miryo asked.

"What about the map the ERS held the pre-initiation thing at?"Oblivion stated.

"It feels like the start of the ERS was ages ago. It's been about three months since Ryo joined and all the crazy stuff happened,"Anakinse said, in a relaxed, but oddly enough tense looking, stance.

"Alright, so what was the location name?"Miryo asked.

"Let me check through the dungeon list,"AnakinseZ said, staring at the Chaos Gate.

"So what will this sparring consist of anyways?"Oblivion asked, waiting for AnakinseZ to find the area's name.

"You usually use this character against other players only and we have people from the orion rank actually come and level Oblivion up while you're not playing on him. So instead of just relying on levels, stats, and what you learn from Sensei Byaku, it'll probably be more benificial if you spend the next two days getting better used to Oblivion and studying Exion's battle movements. She absorbs hit points when she inflicts damage because of her weapon so it'll be best to avoid being hit all together,"Orion explained.

"So I'll be sparring with Skyld and AnakinseZ?"

"Yeah, only, they won't be using weapons, so if they manage to hit you, even though you won't take any damage we'll still have you start over."

"Found it,"AnakinseZ said finally."Delta Chosen Forbidden Great Hall was the area keywords."

"Delta Chosen Forbidden Great Hall,"Orion and AnakinseZ said to the Chaos Gate.

The golden rings surrounded everyone and after disappearing they found themself in the same roman styled room with the U-shaped table around them.

"So we just begin?"Oblivion asked.

Orion nodded.

"I'll go first,"Skyld offered.

"So before we begin, let me just double check, if you can hit me, I lose and I have to hit both of you with my scythe without getting hit?"Oblivion asked.

"Basically,"AnakinseZ answered.

"Ready...Begin,"Miryo announced, pretending to be the judge.

Skyld took a step forward, staring at Oblivion, who looked hesitant as to whether or not he should move.

"Go already,"Orion ordered.

Oblivion took two steps forward, putting one hand stretched out and keeping one by his chest. Skyld ran forward ready to attack, but instead ducked as Oblivion attempted to grab at him. Skyld took a victory by hitting Oblivion in his stomach.  
"Skyld wins,"Miryo said in a disappointed tone.  
The two returned to the previous spots.

"Ready...Begin,"Miryo commanded again.  
Oblivion took the offensive this time running towards Skyld. Skyld slid his foot forward in an attempt to trip Oblivion, but he managed to jump over kicking Skyld back. Skyld regained his footing after stumbling a few steps back. Oblivion charged forward, pulling his scythe of the dark mist that appeared by his hands. Skyld ducked to the side as Oblivion slashed upwards with the massive weapon. Unable to block in time because of the weapon Skyld won again with a quick counter punch.

"Skyld wins again,"Miryo announced.

The two returned once again to the beginning locations.

"Ready...Begin,"Miryo said, obviously losing interest in being the judge by this point.  
"I need to remember to clear my head, I can't keep rushing in,"Oblivion said to himself.

Skyld began slowly walking forward.

"Wait for an opening before going in and attack in a way that'll leave another opening."

Skyld was getting closer.

"Alright,"Oblivion breathed.

Oblivion dashed forward, and stepped to the side to avoid a punch. He grabbed for the arm and threw Skyld back some. Before he could turn around, Oblivion followed up by charging into Skyld making him stumble futher. Oblivion stepped back and kicked Skyld in the back of his knees causing him to fall over. A dark mist appeared, Oblivion grabbed his scythe from it and sliced downwards. Skyld had rolled out of the way and got back up. Oblivion dismissed his scythe and jumped forward, getting a blow on Skyld's face making him fall backwards. He recalled his scythe and landed an attack on Skyld before he could get back up.

"Oblivion wins,"Miryo announced.

Skyld used a Healing Potion and got out of the way, letting AnakinseZ get into position.

"Second round, AnakinseZ against Oblivion. Ready...Begin!"

Both players began running towards eachother. As they came within striking distant they skid to a stop and took a step back to distance themselves. Oblivion took a step forward while ducking and aimed an attack at AnakinseZ's torso, but AnakinseZ reflected the would-be attack and nailed Oblivion in the side of his face with his other hand.

"AnakinseZ wins."

"We're going to keep going until you can defeat both of them three consecutive times,"Orion said, as the next round began.

----------

The training lasted well into night. Around midnight Orion ended the training. Oblivion's record wasn't very good at all, for every victory he had Skyld and AnakinseZ had three or four victories. As exhausted as one could get from playing "The World" Ryo collapsed on his bed quickly falling asleep. The next day carried similar results only AnakinseZ had other things to attend to so Orion took his place. Oblivion's record improved slightly after being rested, but against Orion he didn't manage any wins. Eventually Oblivion improved against Skyld, making the goal of three consecutive victories and finished with five consecutives wins as a record. By the end of the day he was still unable to beat Orion, who had more experiance in the same style of combat, a single time.

The following morning Ryo reviewed the clips of Exion's battle style. It consisted mostly of distracting her opponant with odd stances and quick follow up attacks. Her general hand-to-hand abilities seemed otherwise average, meaning her victories came from her stats and tricks more than her skill.

"People are already here to fight,"Miryo said, as she and Oblivion warped into the map.

Various characters were scattered through out the map.

"Are you sure it's a good idea for you to come with me as a judge?"Oblivion asked, as they started to look for a suitable location to fight.

"It's not like anyone we know would be interested in this kind of thing,"Miryo protested.

"If you say so,"Oblivion responded.

"How's this location?"Miryo asked.

The field was like a wasteland of stone and dirt which had a few small mountains through out the area. The location they decided on was one of the said miniature mountains which had a leveled top that rose about 20 or so feet above the rest of the area.

"Alright, do your thing,"Oblivion said to Miryo.

"If you're here to challenge Oblivion please line up along the path up this hill!"Miryo screamed.

A few people seemed hesitant at first but the people gradually lined up.

"I don't see Exion yet,"Miryo commented to Oblivion.

"Is she the judge or something?"an archer asked walking onto the leveled ground.

Oblivion nodded.

"Oblivion's current record is 48 wins and no losses, this is the 49th match. Ready...begin!"Miryo said.

An arrow appeared in the archer's hand as he pulled back the string on his bow. Oblivion took this time to close the gap between the two. The arrow missed because Oblivion was moving too quickly. By the time the archer had a second arrow ready to shoot Oblivion made it up to him, taking him down in a tackle. The archer dropped his bow and seemed disoriented at first. Oblivion's scythe was out and had already finished off the player by the time he realized what happened.

"The record is now 49 wins to zero losses, next challenger?"Miryo asked.

No one stepped up. The body of the defeated player disappeared and Oblivion returned to his original position.

"No one else was here to challenge him, what's everyone doing then?"Miryo complained.

"We wanted to see Exion fight,"someone shouted.

Various 'Yeah's followed the statement.

"They remind me of Dylan's fangirls,"Miryo said to herself.

"Does anyone know when she'll get here?"Oblivion asked.

No one answered.

"If nobody knows then someone should at least fight until then,"Miryo reasoned.

"I'll fight,"someone called out.

"Awesome, we have a challenger,"Miryo hummed.

The players moved out allowing the person to get up to the simplistic stage.

"Cuoka!?"Miryo said, shocked as she saw the challenger was a friend of hers.

"Ah, it's my beautiful fallen angel. I take you've dumped Coinchii by now?"he asked, grinning.

A sweatdrop fell down Oblivion's head.

"I'm still with him. We're closer than ever,"she happily responded with a cat-like grin.

_Dammit, she's taking advantage of me being on Oblivion, that's low,_ Oblivion thought. Cuoka sighed.

"Ah well. I guess I'll just have to win you over by being the first to beat Oblivion,"he said, getting in a battle stance.

"Oh, right,"Miryo said, almost forgetting the self-appointed judge duty. "Challenger 50, against Oblivion with a record of 49 wins and no losses. Ready...Begin!"

_If it's Cuoka...I guess it's just a game, and it's not like he knows it me. I shouldn't have to hold back...I hope I can go all out, _Oblivion thought as Cuoka began walking side to side.

Oblivion got into his battle stance and like a signal, Cuoka took the offense running forward. Since his character was taller than average it covered the distance quickly.

"Think of this as a pre-Exion warm up,"Oblivion said below his breath before stepping forward and knocking away one of Cuoka's attacks.

The second attack came quicker than his first, but Oblivion managed to knock it away as well. With that attack deflected Cuoka's foot came from Oblivion's right, knocking him to the ground. Before Cuoka could follow up his attack Oblivion jumped back up and put his strength into a punch that knocked Cuoka a few steps back, but because of the system did no real damage unlike Cuoka's hits. Oblivion covered the few steps and attempted a second attack, but instead ended up being countered. Two more punches were landed on Oblivion's torso before he could react again.

_I didn't know he could be this fast _Oblivion thought punching with his left. Cuoka took the bait and turned towards the fist, knocking it away. Oblivion meanwhile was already attacking with his right and landed a solid blow against Cuoka's face knocking him to the ground. Oblivon quickly pulled out his scythe and brought it down on Cuoka, taking out most of his HP in a single hit. Cuoka pushed himself up, but wasn't quick enough and was killed before he could jump out of the way of Oblivion's follow-up attack.

"Oblivion's record is now 50 wins to zero losses,"Miryo shouted, with a slightly quivering voice.

Oblivion used a Healing Potion on himself.

"My conscience is going to kill me over this later,"Oblivion whispered to himself.

"I guess it's my turn,"someone said walking up the path.

The spectators began cheering and made a path so the guest of the main event could make her way up to the battle area.

"It's Exion,"Miryo said, looking over at Oblivion.

"Go easy on me okay,"Exion said winking at Oblivion in a cutesy fashion.

"This is Exion? She acts nothing like what we saw in the videos,"Oblivion said to himself.

"Oblivion 50 wins to zero losses, fighting Exion with 149 kills to zero losses. Ready...Begin!"Miryo shouted.

"Good luck,"Exion said with a friendly smile.

_Does she have a sister on her account or something? _Oblivion asked himself.

He looked at her once again but she was already over half way towards him.

"She must be trying to distract me, that's her specialty,"Oblivion realized too late as Exion had already reached him and hit him directly in the face knocking him back. He attempted to look ahead in order to fight back but she managed to get behind him and brought both of her fists down on Oblivion's head, knocking him face-first to the ground. Oblivion rolled sideways a few times before getting back up. This time he had enough time to react and grabbed the fist Exion attempted to punch him with, but it proofed to be useless as within a second afterwards she managed to get her foot up high enough to kick Oblivion in his side causing him to fall to a knee where she kneed him in the face afterwards.

_She's too fast. At this rate, _Oblivion thought as she picked him up off the ground.

"Too..."Oblivion mouthed before falling limp.

"What happened?"Exion asked.

"You didn't kill him yet, did you?"Miryo asked.

"According to my screen he still has a decent amount of hit points,"Exion replied, looking over at Miryo.

With almost an explosion Oblivion's fist crashed into Exion's skull sending her spinning backwards a few steps. Oblivion raised his head revealing a secret only Miryo would be able to notice. The eyes gave away that he had been taken over by Jugatsu.

"Nice hit, too bad it doesn't do any damage,"Exion replied while smiling friendly.

Oblivion was able to see through the guise and pulled out his scythe. Exion leaped out of the way as the tip of the scythe crashed into the earth where she was standing.

"Dammit, I can't fool you anymore,"she said with a more serious expression.

Exion ducked under the next slash, but wasn't able to defend against the next attack that Oblivion launched after ridding himself of the heavy weapon. The knee made contact knocking her onto her ass. The scythe came back out and cut into Exion, removing her of about one third of her hit points.

"That kind of strength should be illegal,"she remarked, rolling backwards and onto her feet.

The scythe was gone yet again, except this time she couldn't find Oblivion either.

"He's above you,"some shouted.

"How?"she asked turning upwards.

Oblivion's foot landed square on Exion's face. Oblivion jumped off, kicking her in the jaw with his other foot. She stumbled back and lost another third of her hit points as Oblivion quickly followed-up the ambush with a scythe attack.

"How did he get up there, nobody can jump that high,"Exion thought aloud.

She blocked the next two attacks Oblivion attempted. Oblivion's third attack was an attempted knee to the stomach, but Exion grabbed his knee and tossed him to the side. She jumped over, trying to land a kick as he got up, but instead Oblivion rolled towards her direction causing her to over jump. Oblivion got up with enough spare time to launch another attack. His scythe came out and was on aim swinging upwards towards Exion who was too busy turning around to dodge. She paused with fear as the scythe stopped just short of landing the final blow.

She glanced cautiously towards Oblivion who was beginning to rock side to side.

"Are you okay?"Miryo asked, running over to him.

"Everyone get off of this map now,"a voice suddenly said.

Momiri and Venus suddenly appeared next to Oblivion.

"I'll ask once again, everyone please return to town and avoid this map,"Momiri ordered once more.

The players reluctantly began warping out.

"What's going on?"Exion asked, stepping back from Oblivion's scythe.

"Force Warp, player Exion,"Momiri said suddenly.

Exion disappeared in a set of golden rings.

"Alright, I'm not picking up any other players on the map,"Code said, his voice coming from nowhere.

Oblivion's scythe vanished, but Oblivion continued to sway back and forth.

"What's going on with Ryo?"Miryo asked, grabbing Venus's sleeve.

"We picked up wierd brain waves, they're Jugatsu's but something is different this time, everything is static," Code answered.

"So what's happening?"she asked in a more fierce tone.

"We can't say anything yet,"Code said, trying to calm her down.

Suddenly a light started pulsating from Oblivion's body. Every few second a wave of golden light shot out from the rocking Scythe-Wielder causing the map to shake.

"Code, you're sure Jugatsu was in control before this?"Momiri asked.

"Positive. Exion was winning at the beginning of the match and in desperation Ryo must have summoned Jugatsu, but I don't know what happened to trigger this,"Code said during the now more frequent pulsations.

"Activation,"Oblivion said as light began to shine around his body. In a glow of golden light Oblivion let out a shout as he vanished.

* * *

Reviews ect. so on welcome per usual. Be sure to tune in for the next chapter, I have big plans for it. 


	30. Chapter 30:Realization

I live! I swear I am not dead, and I promise, once again, that I will finish this story if it kills me. Anyways, I could apologize about being late, but I find it would be pointless by this point, instead I bring chapter 30, enjoy.

* * *

"So where are Oblivion and Jugatsu now?"Momiri asked, looking upwards.

"Not sure, I'm checking now. I don't think it's an area we've seen before,"Code replied with haste.

"What's on his screen, you're in the same room as him,"Miryo shouted.

"Venus, beginning running a search in the Delta server for anything that looks like illegal warping or modification on a player account,"Momiri ordered.

"I already started, it's running now, but nothing yet,"Venus replied.

"I heard from Skyld and AnakinseZ that Jugatsu had a bracelet with powers similar to the AIs. I believe Jugatsu somehow made those powers manifest within Oblivion."

"We knew about the bracelet already. Sorry, but it seems to have slipped our mind, otherwise we would've informed you,"Momiri apologized.

"No worries, I guess it saves us time now,"Code replied.

"Momiri,"Venus interjected.

"Find him yet?"

"Not yet, but I did find some messed up information, if the system hasn't recorded Oblivion's area change then-"

"-then the information from another area about the same player could mess up data,"Momiri finished.

"How's h-"Code began, before a click took off his a voice.

"Can you use that information from the messed up data to try and find Oblivion?"Miryo asked.

"Possibly. I stopped the scan after recieving the data and I'm now using it in order to see what areas were scanned within a second of the data being recieved. From there Code can search those places and we would know for sure. That is if we can pull it off the way I'm thinking we can,"Venus answered, tapping on her clipboard as though there was keyboard there.

"Sorry, it's a bit chaotic up here, every time Jugatsu takes over Ryo's character inside "The World" it puts a lot of strain on Ryo's physical body,"Code suddenly said.

"Did you hear what Venus just explained?"Momiri asked.

"Yeah, send me the data when you're ready, I should be able to find him if almost instantaniously if I only have to search a few areas."

"It should be one of these,"Venus said, typing out a few more things on her clipboard.

"I've recieved it, I'm starting the search...Found it. He's at-"

----------

Oblivion was holding his sides, leaning against a stone wall.

"Sorry...Ryo,"Oblivion said, slowly walking down the hallway. "It seems...I'm restoring to my normal state...further than I imagined...The state of my being...is trying to take over...with or without my consent."

"So that's it,"a voice said out of nowhere.

"Code?"

"Yeah. Jugatsu, I need to know two things; First is there a way of controlling when you take over Ryo, and second is there a way to dismiss your grip over Ryo's body? You're putting a lot of strain every time you take over while he's playing "The World","Code stated in a grim voice.

"Unfortunatly I don't know the answer...to either of those, and...I figured sooner or later my presence would create trouble for Ryo...that's why I thought if he shared part of his being...it would be easier to supress me."

"You mean, his red eye?"Code asked.

"Yes...that's the symbol...of my being,"Oblivion answered between pauses and pants.

"There he is,"Miryo shouted running down the hallway.

"Oblivion?"Venus asked appearing the side with Momiri.

Oblivion suddenly fell over with pain covering his face.

"Ryo,"Miryo shouted running over to him.

"Delta Smiling Detestable White Devil, is there any reason you came here?"Code asked, suddenly.

"There really isn't anything at all unique about this dungeon from our records,"Momiri stated.

"This...is...where it...started,"Oblivion managed to force out.

"Didn't this start when Ryo first joined "The World"? Miryo asked, petting Oblivion's head.

"I think he means the first incident. The one a few years ago,"Code answered.

"Skyld just sent me a message," Momiri suddently said.

"What's it say?"Code asked.

"I informed him of the situation before we knew where Oblivion was. Skyld figured he might have gone to the cathedral. His message is the following 'I went to Hidden Forbidden Holy Ground from Mac Anu, the cathedral. When I arrived it was the same as before, there was the odd statue of the two kids and that eerie writing on the pedestal in front of the statue, but when I approached the statue it turned white and changed into a different statue. I could describe it, but it would be difficult, when you get the chance come check out.',"Momiri finished.

"Can we take Oblivion?"Code asked.

"I can get us back to town, but we still have to use the Chaos Gate to warp to that dungeon, someone will have to get him in the same party as Miryo so she'll be able to warp with him,"Momiri answered.

"I'll have someone do it. For the moment Ryo's body has calmed down it seems,"Code responded.

Momiri closed her eyes and the four characters vanished in their respective set of golden rings, appearing in Mac Anu afterwards.

"Delta Hidden Fobidden Holy Ground,"Momiri said.

She appeared with Venus on the bridge in front of the cathedral. Miryo appeared shortly afterwards, holding Oblivion up. Oblivion's state seemed to improve, with the help of Miryo he was now walking, although slow. Skyld was at the entrance to invite them inside where they laid eyes on the new prediction of cathedral.

The statue now held a single child with traits of what one would consider a demon. A spiked wing, a horn from the center the child's forehead and a claw took the place of one of the child's hands. The child itself was on its knees and hands, glaring in the direction of the door.

"What's the writing say this time?"Oblivion grunted.

Skyld walked back over to it.

"It seems different than usual, but it says 'When a vessel cannot contain what it's holding it, then the contents will go to waste unless a new vessel is chosen. One can modify the vessel but it is up to the one who can modify the vessel to do so.',"Skyld read.

"I'm not sure what this place is, but if it responds to the current situation we're in, then it obviously means what we already know. Jugatsu's essence is too much for Ryo's body. The modify statement...Jugatsu said he already tried to to do that,"Code stated.

"So then, we have to find a new person for Jugatsu to inhabit?"Venus asked.

"I wouldn't know how to do that, I can't even figure out to control Jugatsu's summoning,"Code answered.

"I don't even know why I'm Ryo's body, let alone how to go to another one, or leave,"Oblivion said, feeling a bit better.

He was able to stand by himself.

"How's Ryo's body?"Miryo asked, upon seeing the state of Oblivion.

"His body appears to fine. It's like he's sleeping. If my guess is right then his body under goes strain during Jugatsu's fighting, or when Jugatsu's emotion are intense,"Code replied.

"So as long as I take it easy when I'm in control, Ryo will be fine?"Oblivion asked.

"For now, at least. And I can't be 100 sure either,"Code answered.

"Are we sure this statue is referring to Jugatsu, though?"Skyld asked.

"It easily fits, but it does seem a bit more obvious than it's previous writings, so I can see where it seems questionable,"Code responded.

"I'm with Skyld on this one, though. It seems like it fits the Jugatsu situation, but...it really doesn't feel like it's related to Jugatsu,"Venus said, holding her chin in a thoughtful manner.

"Let's not worry about it for now, in the meantime we should make use of Jugatsu's presence."

"That's right,"Skyld answered, piecing together what Code was referring to.

"Umm, I'm going to watch over Ryo's body,"Miryo said before warping out of the area.

"Jugatsu,"Code said abrubtly.

"Yeah?"Oblivion replied.

"The last time "The World" suffered from AIs, you were the one who put a stop to it, correct?"

"Well...if I put a stop to it, we wouldn't be in this mess right now, but I managed to defeat the old Dusk,"Oblivion answered.

"I've managed to gather enough information to get the basics of what happened last time, but one part continues to escape me. During your last fight as yourself, both of the AIs were on the map that broke off of the server. You were on it as well, weren't you?"

"Yeah?"Oblivion answered, puzzled.

"So then I was correct. Since you were the only three that could've been on the map, and the other two are the AIs which now make up Twilight, you're the only person I can ask about that battle. What exactly happened that lead to the closure of the last incident?"Code inquired.

"Originally we planned an all out assult against Dusk on that map. The protection for the town is the same as the what we used before to try and prevent them from warping out during the fight. We managed to realize that the reason Dusk continued to find us was because of the energy released when Skyld and AnakinseZ used their weapons. We used that as a lure to attract their attention. As we figured during planning, Dawn appeared first and attempted to warn us of Dusk's arrival, but we held Dawn until Dusk arrived. At that point we activated the barrier to prevent them from leaving.

"From there we attempted the assult according to our planning, but it proved to be ineffective and Dusk eventually forced us out of our planned attack. With no planning he quickly defeated us one after another and managed to retrieve both of the swords. I used the power of the bracelet to get everyone else out of there and from there the map was disconnected. This was a plan me and Remial decided on after everyone left as a back-up should our main plan fail, but Remial was strongly against it."

"I came to that conclusion afterwards, I found it odd, even for you, to do something that reckless,"Skyld interrupted.

Oblivion scratched the back of his head before continuing. "From there the last fight occured between me and Dusk. I managed to win by unleashing my anger. After Dusk was defeated I used the bracelet to absorb Dusk's data. U-"

"Before you go on,"Code interjected,"What you mean unleashing your anger?"

"Oh, it was an odd trait of mine. If I ever got angry my eyes would change color, the gray with red streaks. Usually I tried to hold back my anger because I'm like a completely different person when I'm angry. Now, after I absorbed Dusk's body, I figured that was the end of it, but the core of his being...or I guess you could call it his soul, still existed in the form of a ball of red light. Even after his body was absorbed into the bracelet he still faught back by trying to take over Dawn's body, but she held him back from taking control long enough for me to data drain her as well.

"The bracelet reacted oddly after I absorbed both of them and I figured it was because the bracelet was probably more powerful with their data in it. In order to prevent this from happening anymore I decided to make use of the power by putting my character-...by putting myself into the next action I used the bracelet for. I figured I was deleting the map and everything within it, but I guess I did nothing but absorb it and turn the bracelet into a void,"Oblivion finished.

"Are trying to say that you think you may have created the Deletion Zone?"Momiri asked.

"Well, no one knew of it's existance until recently and I'm sure someone would've noticed it before now if it existed back then. Plus I figure it makes since. If something is deleted it's basically cast into nothingness which is what I did with the bracelet during my deletion. A bracelet that can absorb data. It wouldn't surprise me if it absorbed things while in the void,"Oblivion answered.

"And that just added on another possible theory as to how the disaster we face today has occured. I see where Jugatsu is coming from. If the Deletion Zone is in fact the bracelet, then it would make since that Twilight and the other AIs are there. And since Jugatsu put his body into the last deletion it wouldn't be farfetched to believe that's why his body isn't around, but his being, or soul, is,"Code followed up.

"Jugatsu, you didn't learn how to use the bracelet at will until the final fight, right?"Skyld asked suddenly.

"Around the time for the final fight it was easier to use, yeah. Why do you -Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"Oblivion replied.

"I'm thinking that, back during the first mess the bracelet Jugatsu used reacted when he was in a dire situation, and it wasn't until later he actually learned control over it. So in theory, would it be possible it's the same with Coi-Ob-Err...Ryo? I mean Jugatsu only surfaces at certain times, usually when Coinchii...Ryo, I don't what to call him anymore, but when he's about either lose a match or something that's strongly familiar to Jugatsu appears,"Skyld explained.

"That's what I thought you were getting at,"Oblivion said, grinning.

"It's going to be too difficult to bother explaining all the questions revolving around this incident for now. I believe it would be best if we didn't strain our heads coming up with conclusion that, more often than not, can't be proven,"Code said.

"Okay, we'll tell them now,"Momiri said to Venus.

Oblivion and Skyld looked over.

"We recieved notification a few minutes ago from CC Corp about what they believe is AI activity, they tried to contact AnakinseZ but he's offline and the only other people who are aware of the situation in "The World" are standing right here,"Venus stated.

"Alright, we got it,"Skyld said walking towards them

"After we see what they're up to I'll send back-up if need be,"Code said.

"Let's go,"Momiri said, with a nod.

After a quick warp back to town they were teleported to the location.

"As I'm sure you can see, this isn't a dungeon of any sort, we were planning on making an event out of it,"Momiri commented as everyone was appearing.

The area they appeared in was a small island with a wooden bridge leading off somewhere. Because of a wall blocking the way it was impossible to see what was down the bridge.

"Venus, deactivate the event walls so we can get to the temple,"Momiri ordered.

"Right away,"Venus obeyed, tapping away at her clipboard.

The walls fell one by one into bridge until the fifth one fell revealing a large temple on another island.

"The point of this event was to defeat a powerful monster. After defeating it the wall would drop and another even more powerful monster would appear. If the player cleared the bridge he would then make it to the temple where they would have to navigate through a small maze to get to the prize room. An NPC that has yet to be placed was to ask players which type of item they would like to recieve, and depending on the response they would get a prize. There's a secret request however, that if someone asks it, they would get the real prize,"Venus explained as they ran over the lengthy bridge and approached the temple.

"But this place isn't even open to the public. I'm not here either, so why would they be here?"Oblivion asked as the group reached the steps.

"Maybe Pyro was planning on making some monsters so when the event was released the players would be ambushed?"Skyld suggested, walking up the stairs to the set of doorways leading inside.

"Or maybe we just wanted to lure you to an area where we would have an advantage,"Kiiro's voice rang out from within the doors which suddenly burst open.

"You said it's like a maze in there, right?"Oblivion asked, turning to Venus.

"Yeah, they'll know where to ambush you from,"she answered.

"No, they plan on using Kiiro to alter the data, probably trapping us inside of it. It happened before, she converted an entire map into a labyrinth just to trap Ryo and his friends,"Oblivion said, walking inside.

"You're still going in, despite knowing that?"Momiri asked harshly.

"We won't get anything done if we sit around out here,"Skyld answered.

"Fine, but be careful,"Momiri replied, disappointed.

Oblivion and Skyld looked at eachother, nodded, and ran inside. The doors closed behind them.

"Glad to see you two have guts,"Kiiro's voice said, echo'ing through the place.

At the moment the two were in fairly decent sized room with rows of seats centered around a stand. Doors aside from the ones they used to enter covered the base of the wall on the other three walls.

"How many of you are here?"Skyld asked.

"Why not enter a door and come see for yourself,"Kiiro suggested.

"The fact they used the term 'we' when you said you wanted to lure us in, means there's more than one,"Oblivion said, walking across the room to a door ahead.

Skyld followed a few steps behind.

"I figured that much, I would think all of them would be here, since they rarely work seperated anymore,"Skyld said as they approached the first door.

Oblivion pulled it open which revealed the entrance to stone labyrinth. As they stepped inside the door behind slammed shut and vanished, leaving a dead end.

"I guess we can't get back out until we get out of here,"Oblivion said, pushing on the newly formed wall.

Skyld walked to closest turn and peered around the corner, seeing nothing. Oblivion pulled out his scythe and walked along the path, taking a left at any forks they came upon. Skyld followed in suit shortly afterwards pulling out his sword. The maze turned out to be small, just as Venus had said and the two found themself out of the maze within a few minutes, without any ambushes.

"Kiiro?"Oblivion shouted as they exited the final walls of the maze.

Silence.

"I'm sure they knew our whereabouts in that maze. I wonder why they didn't ambush us,"Skyld said, walking ahead to a set of stairs that led up to another floor.

"It's kind of lame if you think about it,"Oblivion said, following Skyld up the stairs.

"What is?"Skyld asked as he approached the top of the staircase.

The two stepped out into a large room, but dark room, with no lighting except for the hole in the roof which allowed a spotlight from the sun to shine down into the center of the room.

There was a loud crashing sound and the assorted doors at various points in the room sunk downwards, disappearing below the floor.

"The fact we have no choice but to walk into what's clearly a trap,"Oblivion finished.

The two got their weapons ready as red portals appeared from the roof letting in large human-shaped monsters. There was a thud as the muscular ogre-esk creatures landed. They adorned leather loin-cloths and large axes.

"Look like anything you know?"Oblivion asked.

"Probably a monster mimiced off of Jade,"Skyld answered.

Oblivion ran to one of the ogres, leaving the other to Skyld. Having a good four or five foot further reach than Oblivion, the first ogre attempted to get an attack on Oblivion, but was blocked as Oblivion raised the handle to intercept the blow. Oblivion put a slant on the scythe, making the axe fall down then leaped forward impaling the ogre with the pointed side of the scythe blade. The ogre knocked Oblivion back with its arm and attempted another attack, but because it's slow speed Oblivion was able to side-step out of the way. Due to the scythe's weight he almost fell over, but managed to steady himself. The ogre raised his axe, leaving himself open as Oblivion chucked his scythe at the ogre's face. The axe fell to the ground as the ogre slammed onto the ground backward, shortly afterwards blowing away into dusk.

"Good job, Jugatsu,"Skyld said, finishing off his ogre.

Ducking under the ogre's last attack Skyld thrust his sword into it's chest which felled the monster.

"Alright, we took out the minions, where are you at?"Oblivion asked, picking up his scythe.

"Don't move,"Aqua said, suddenly, pushing a sword against Oblivion's neck. "You know what happens if you take damage from an AI, if I attack your neck right now, it'd leave real damage on the boy's body."

"Skyld?"Oblivion said, unable to turn around.

"He isn't going anywhere either,"Kiiro's voice responded.

"So this, Jugatsu, inside of Oblivion and Coinchii is what the boss is really after?"Pyro asked, walking into the light in the middle of the room.

"Let's just get this over with it, the sooner we finish with that player, the better,"Jade replied, walking up next to Pyro.

"Then stop talking and come over here to help us warp them out,"Aqua ordered.

"Skyld,"Oblivion commented again.

"Be patient,"Skyld replied.

"How do you have weapons anyways?"Oblivion asked, unable to turn around to them.

"My specialty is altering data, all I had to do was merge some character data into ourselves, and viola, we have weapons,"Kiiro answered.

Pyro put a hand on Oblivion's shoulder.

"Ready?"Pyro asked as Aqua pulled her weapon back.

Oblivion knocked away Pyro's hand and swung his scythe around in a 360 degree circle.

"Skyld,"Oblivion shouted, slashing at Aqua who attempted get closer.

"You don't move,"Kiiro ordered, her sword still against Skyld's neck.

"I don't plan on moving yet,"Skyld said, smirking.

"Yet?"Kiiro asked.

Suddenly Oblivion appeared, midway through a slash at Kiiro. In order to dodge Kiiro quickly jumped away, narrowley missing the blade. Skyld regripped his sword and slashed downwards at Aqua's blade which was beginning to head towards Oblivion's back in an attack. Aqua's weapon was knocked to the ground, but Skyld wasn't about to let her get it back. A follow up attack forced Aqua away from her weapon.

"Duck,"Oblivion ordered suddenly.

Skyld quickly ducked afterwards, making space for Oblivion's scythe as it flew in a circular motion towards Aqua. The two partners traded side, Oblivion went behind Skyld who turned his sights on Kiiro, who hesitated to attack to the scythe wielder. Oblivion's scythe disappeared from the ground in front of Aqua.

"When fighting an AI, numbers and stats don't count,"Oblivion said, beginning to charge forward.

"What's th-"Aqua began to say only to be cut-off by a punch to the face, sending her backwards to the ground.

"Aqua!"Kiiro shouted, pushing off one of Skyld's attacks.

Skyld slashed down once more with enough force to knock Kiiro down despite her block. He followed up the attack by spinning around and kicking Kiiro in her side, knocking her over. Kiiro pushed herself up on her sword, but was ignored, since Skyld was heading towards Oblivion and Aqua.

"You really aren't that great at fighting,"Oblivion said, deflecting an attempted punch by Aqua.

"Here, Aqua,"Kiiro shouted, clapping her hands together.

A wall suddenly appeared between Aqua and her two enemies. She pulled a sword Kiiro had placed in the wall which proceeded afterwards to crumble. There was a flash of light as Aqua launched the next attack which proved to be futile as Oblivion and Skyld already put distance between them and the wall. After the failed attack the two rushed forward, both weapons in hand and landed a massive blow against Aqua whose body had already taken a lot of damage from the battle. Kiiro who had closed the distance between Skyld and herself attempted another attack, but was blocked by Oblivion's scythe which hooked the sword. With a quick yank the sword was soon flying across the room. Aqua attempted to make an attack on the preoccupied scythe wielder but the attack was nullified by Skyld's defensive manuvering. The two swords were locked in a battle of strength which was one-sided. Skyld pushed her back and thrust his sword forward. Aqua managed to dodge it, but ended up tripping over her own feet which put her in a worse position. Skyld brought down his sword in a devestating blow that caused Aqua to scream out in pain.

"Aqua!"Pyro shouted running over.

"Don't move,"a familiar voice suddenly shouted.

"Is it Code?"Skyld asked, his weapon paused as he was about to attack once more.

"No, that's not Code's voice,"Oblivion said, uncertain of the voice's owner.

At first it seemed as though the light from the middle of the room began to spread, but Oblivion realized shortly after it was a ball of energy.

"Twilight,"Skyld and Oblivion grunted at the same time.

The light faded revealing the boss of the AIs once again.

"Twilight,"Oblivion said, angry.

Twilight merely stared for a moment before what seemed like psychic energy gathered and blew the two characters to the wall on the edge of the room.

"Forgive her, th-"Pyro began to began, but stopped when Twilight looked at her.

"I'm not going to let you get away,"Oblivion said, standing back up.

His scythe disappeared as he charged forward. Halfway through he grabbed one of the AI's swords which had been knocked to the floor and lunged forward.

"Stay,"she ordered.

Like magic Oblivion was halted in midair, completely nullifying any chance of attack. The red dress wearing girl turned once more to Aqua, who laid on the ground, unable to get up.

"Date absorbtion,"Twilight mouthed. a white circle soon appeared in front of the girl and from it shot out two beams of white light which impaled Aqua.

"That's...the Data Drain-like technique Jugatsu used before,"Skyld said, standing up.

Aqua's body gradually went from beind a physical object to a blue light which began shrinking as it traveled through the white ropes and into the circle. Unable to do anything, Oblivion floated there, watching as the remnants of Aqua soon disappeared leaving Twilight with a blue circle which faded into her body.

"What you're looking at,"Twilight said suddenly, turning to Oblivion,"-is failed attempts of mine to create a bracelet similar to what you once possessed.

"These are failed copies of my bracelet?"Oblivion asked, dropping the sword he held to the ground, which he was still floating above..

"Still, failed copies or not I attempted to have them track down you since at the time I was still weakened. At last you're mine now,"Twilight said, emotionless, which added to Oblivion's worries.

"You three,"Twilight said, still facing the suspended Oblivion.

"Yes,"the three replied in unison.

"Unfortunately using data absorbtion for the first time proved to tire me more than I thought. It seems I'm still not at my best. Until I'm ready to get the bracelet from Jugatsu, keep him in captivity and make sure his logging stays locked. His physical body isn't his anyways,"Twilight ordered, before disappearing in a white light again.

Oblivion fell to the ground.

"Ryo,"he whispered, picking himself up.

"Now's my chance,"Skyld shouted running at the three remaining AIs.

Before Skyld was able to close the distance though, the AIs had already grabbed Oblivion and were beginning to warp away. Skyld brought out his sword and slashed at the ball of light as it disappeared.

"I'm in,"Code's voice finally said.

"I couldn't help him,"Skyld commented, staring at the spot Oblivion was.

"Ryo's body just went through immense stress. Because of Twilight we had to cancel scanning information, what happened?"Code asked quickly.

"Twilight is unstoppable with her current level of power, and despite all the time she's had to recover, she still isn't at her most powerful. Jugatsu attempted to attack her after she knocked us both across the room with some kind of psychic blast, but she used some other power to halt his movements. Then she used some technique called data absorbtion to absorb Aqua who we managed to defeat. Then she said something about the other three AIs being failed attempts at creating a bracelet and took Oblivion,"Skyld explained, annoyed by his failure.

"Relax, there's only one place they would've taken him. We'll gather our forces and launch a recovery mission to get him back. We will not lose Ryo or Jugatsu,"Code said with determination.

"Right,"Skyld said, feeling somewhat remotivated.

"Report to the following map and wait for the other troops, it's where I'll be implementing the gate to Deletion Zone shortly,"Code ordered.

"Yes, sir,"Skyld replied, even more remotivated.

Skyld paused to take one last look at the room before being warped out of the temple by Code.

* * *

Complaints, hate mail, suggestions, comments, critisizm, all welcome and the first two which are deserved. So I have chapter 31 started, hopefully sooner or later my releases will begin to return to a normal pattern. But yeah Goes to work on the next chapter now for the next release. 


	31. Chapter 31:Quad C Assault

I'm still alive I swear. I'm giong to finish AIC if it kills me and afterwards probably start on another fanfic I have rotting.(It's a final fantasy fanfic, woo) Anyways until I finish AIC(No idea when that'll be) that won't be happening. And speaking of AIC, I apologize again for being late. Considering my last profile update was in March and my last story update I'm guessing was also then, it means it's taken me almost a month ro release a chapter that's already been written. Forgive my idiocy, please and continue to enjoy AIC which will soon be getting updated regularly again...I hope... Enjoy

* * *

"Who do we have so far?"Code asked, sitting in his chair.

"We have Skyld, I managed to contact the ERS, we can probably get Zero, Ryo's main group of friends were still up, so we managed to contact them, and lastly the two leaders of October were given order by AnakinseZ to help us when needed,"Data replied, typing something on a laptop.

"Specifically, who?"  
"Skyld, Zero, Shadow, Ace, Junhi, Serene, Mohi, Demon, Cuoka, Gyuni, Hedrei, Orion, Shot, and AlphaWave."

"14 people, so two groups of five, one of four. I want Skyld, Orion, and Hedrei in charge of the teams. Skyld will take Zero, Mohi, Demon, and Shot. Orion, you'll take Cuoka, Gyuni, Ace, and Junhi. Hedrei will take AlphaWave, Serene, and Shadow. When they're in place let me know,"Code ordered.

"Yes, sir!"Data responded.

----------

"I can't believe she got rid of Aqua,"Kiiro said, leaning against a wall in a room of their base.

"All we can do is watch out for ourselves if we want to be free. Once she finishes with that player we'll be able to do as we please,"Jade replied, with an emotionless face that managed to keep out most of the sullen tone in her voice.

"There's always that one guy. The boss seems to trust him, but even if he does claim he protected them to strengthen their trust, I still think he's fishy,"Pyro added.

"What do you two think about the boss's other comment? Do you think they'll really try to attack us?"Kiiro asked.

"They're stronger than we are now, that Skyld and Oblivion managed to defeat Aqua. One more hit and she probably would've been killed,."Pyro replied, looking out of the lower corner of her eyes.

"I'll just have to come up with one of my strongest transformations yet. Pyro can clone up to three of that monster, then you, Kiiro, can turn yourself and Pyro into characters in order to fight them on better grounds,"Jade suggested.

"We'll try that, but in the end it'll probably be decided by your monster, so make sure it's a good one,"Kiiro said, pushing herself on the wall and walking away.

Jade followed, leaving Pyro alone in the room. She walked over to the bed.

"Jugatsu, I think they call you, you've managed to elude our grip for awhile, but don't expect to get away this time,"Pyro said to herself, before leaving as well.

----------

"Who's that AlphaWave guy,"Mohi asked Demon.

"You fought him in the Gruntyback semi-finals,"Demon replied, sitting on the side of the U shaped table.

"Alright everyone's here, we'll begin now,"Code's voice said from no particular spot.

"Is that the infamous Code?"someone asked.

"It's the legendary hacker, yeah. You've heard your orders though, we're to assist Code if we're called upon,"Hedrei replied.

"In case you're wondering Oblivion has been kidnapped by the AI's, we're going to get him back, Jugatsu is currently in control,"Code said.

"Oblivion? Jugatsu?"Junhi asked.

"I'll send an explanation in an e-mail later, all you need to know now is Oblivion's player is Ryo who plays Coinchii, most of which you should know,"Code answered. "Let's get these groups settled first off. The first group will be known as Team A. You'll be entering ahead of the others to assult the AIs before they know what hit them. Team A will consist of Orion, Cuoka, Gyuni, Ace, and Junhi. You guys head out, first."

"You heard him, let's go,"Orion ordered, waving his team over.

A blue circle soon appeared on the floor at the middle of the table. It looked like a kind of water.

"Alright, this will lead right to the entrance of the Deletion Zone,"Code ordered.

Orion nodded and charged in.

"I haven't faught the AIs before,"Junhi commented, worried.

"Relax, I've faught them a few times before, just keep your guard up and we can overpower them,"Ace said, patting him on the shoulder.

Cuoka and Gyuni had already followed Orion in, and the two ERS members now went in.

----------

"Alright, follow me, I know where the mansion is,"Orion ordered, running down a nearby alley.

"You work for Code, right?"Ace asked Orion.

"Yeah, why?"

"I suppose if you're friends with Coinchii and the people in charge trust you then it's okay, but to think the rumors were true,"Ace said, with a hint of disappointment in his statement.

"Rumors?"Cuoka asked.

"Yeah,"Junhi stated coming in,"There were rumors that Coinchii had been working with hackers after leaving the ERS, but we figured they were probably misinterpreted."

"Wait a minute,"Cuoka suddenly stated, stopping.

Everyone turned to him.

"If Coinchii is Oblivion, and Oblivion killed me, that means Coinchii killed me. And that means, Miryo really is with Coinchii still,"Cuoka said, putting his hand on his chin in a thoughtful manner.

"Now isn't the time,"Gyuni shouted, hitting him in the head with her staff.

"Right, let's keep going, it shouldn't be too long before the other start making their move,"Orion commented, before continueing his dash to the AI's base.

----------

"They should be approaching the base soon, now for the next team. This team will set priority on Oblivion. Team R, for recovery, will be lead by Skyld, and the ones going with him will be Mohi, Demon, Shot, and Zero,"Code stated.

"Zero's here?" Mohi asked, surprised.

"You think I would really miss something like this?"Zero asked, after sneaking up behind Mohi.

"Stop wasting time, the longer Jugatsu is in the hold of the AIs the better the chances are of something happening to him,"Skyld barked, before walking into the circle of water.

Zero smirked and jumped in second, followed by Ace.

"Right, we gotta help Ryo,"Mohi said, looking at Demon, who was walking in next.

After Mohi disappeared Code addressed the remaing four.

"You remaining four make up team G. You'll be guarding the entrance. Hedrei, AlphaWave, Serene, and Shadow. Hedrei will be in charge,"Code ordered.

"Right, let's go,"Hedrei ordered, pulling out his sword and jumping into the circle.

----------

The main door was kicked open by Orion, who had his spear ready.

"They aren't here,"Gyuni commented, both hands tight on her staff.

"Alright, let's make a racket and see if we can't attract their attention,"Orion said, walking in catiously.

"What do you have in mind?"Ace asked, looking side to side.

"First let's find an area away from the entrance so the other won't get caught up in the fight,"Orion said, walking to a door on the right side.

He slowly opened it, letting Cuoka jump in when it was half way open.

"Nothing yet,"Cuoka reported, walking forward.

"Alright, at the end of the hallway we'll start trashing the place,"Orion commented, knocking over a vase with the end of his spear.

The antique looking vase shattered, and was crushed beneath the feet of the others walking in.

"We have to make as much noise as possible, that should tip them off,"Orion ordered, half way down the hallway.

----------

"I guess they already went in," Shot commented as Team R laid eyes on the mansion's open doors.

"Mohi, you were here once before, where would they hold someone?"Skyld asked, still running.

"I don't remember. Last time I was here it seemed like nothing more than a typical mansion with a bunch of rooms,"Mohi answered, managing to keep up pace with Skyld.

"It would probably be best to look for something out of the ordinary, this isn't like the first time, they'll probably have Ryo in a more secured area now that Jugatsu is control of him.

They continued running, finally reaching the mansion's doors. They paused once inside to look around, but ended up getting ambushed by a sudden beam of energy.

"Twilight?"Skyld asked, jumping out of the way.

Everyone had managed to dodge it as well.

"We thought something was up when that first group of people came in and you were absent,"Kiiro said, standing at the top of the stairs in front of them.

Standing behind her was a large golem-like monsters with two large cannons for arms. It's face was hidden beneath a black leather bag looking hat. The only thing visisble on it's face was a glowing red eye.

"Nifty monster, no?"Kiiro asked.

"There should still be two more AIs, meaning they're probably attacking the others,"Skyld said, aloud.

"Two more? I thought there was four,"Mohi responded confused.

"You aren't getting Jugatsu, leave now or you'll end up dead,"Kiiro smirked, snapping her fingers.

The golem behind her roared and shot off two more beams of energy, which were narrowly dodged. Shot pulled back on the bow's string and an arrow appeared. Cuoka, Skyld, and Demon had already begun charging up the stairs. Shot released his arrow and it zoomed towards the cannon golem, but harmlessly bounced off.

"Ani kruz!"Mohi shouted, pointing his staff towards the monster.

A group of dark spheres appeared around the golem attaching themselves and growing until the cannon golem was covered in one giant ball which disappeared.

The three close-range fighters managed to get up to Kiiro who dodged Demon's first attack before kicking him back down the stairs. He managed to grab the railing a few steps down. Skyld stayed back as Zero leaped forward tackling Kiiro to the ground.

"I think I can manage to take the AI, you guys go after Jugatsu,"Zero said, pinning Kiiro to the ground.

Skyld nodded and grabbed Demon, running back down the stairs.

"We'll find another route,"Skyld ordered, upon reaching the base of the stairs.

"Not so fast,"Kiiro shouted, shoving Zero off and clapping her hands together. "You guys aren't important so I don't have to hold back."

The outter layer of the cannon golem seemed to blow apart revealing a dataless monster.

"She made one of those,"Skyld responded, shocked.

The cannon golem cleared the entire set of stairs in one leap, almost crushing Skyld. It let out a howl and sent out rope like objects from various parts of his body. Skyld ducked under one and ran to the left towards a door. Mohi attempted to block it with his staff, but when it broke through effortlessly he was forced to ditch it and followed Skyld, jumping over a stray dataless rope. Demon managed to dodge the ropes going towards him but tripped over Shot, who was hit by one of the ropes. His character was slowly disappearing, being absorbed by the dataless rope.

"Shot..."Demon mouthed, before attempting to slash through the rope in a futile effort, only managing to brake his own daggers.

"Code will have to help him, for now let's go ahead,"Skyld shouted across the large room.

Demon looked at Skyld, then Mohi. He took a deep breath than ran across, sliding under and jumping over the various dataless ropes. The golem finally recovered enough energy to send out another wave, but Demon made into the doorway just in time. Skyld slammed it shut and jumped back, as one of the dataless ropes pierced through the door.

"What will we do without weapons?"Mohi asked as the only remaining three members of Team R ran down the hallway.

"An important fact to remember is when fighting AIs stats don't count. Even if you use a weapon that doesn't belong to your class it can still hurt the AIs,"Skyld said, taking a right at the end of the hallway.

"Do you have an extra weapon?"Mohi asked, as the three of them stopped at a large door.

Skyld pulled out a very plain sword and tossed it back to Mohi. Demon had an extra set of daggers at hand. Skyld nodded when he saw both of them were ready. He pushed open the door, revealing a large dining room.

"Alright, let's start searching here,"Skyld ordered, as Mohi and Demon walked in.

Skyld took another look in both directions of the hallway before closing the doors.

"Good luck, Zero,"Skyld whispered to himself.

----------

Ace managed to trip the cannon golem, causing it to fall backwards.

"Me and Junhi will take this, why don't you guys go after that AI,"Ace shouted, slashing at the golem's joints.

Pyro had already made it a considerable distance away, upon realizing they learned of the golem's weak points.

"Catch up with us when you finish this thing off,"Orion ordered before following Gyuni and Cuoka who already ran off.

Pyro was already out of breath from creating copies of Jade's monster, which was good news for Team A. Cuoka, Gyuni, and Orion caught up with her quickly, making attack after attack, most of which were successful.

"If AIs can really be killed, then this the end of you,"Cuoka shouted, landing punch after punch on Pyro who was doing all she could just to block.

The blows quickly tired her down and she fell to the ground after a grunt, out of breath.

Orion raised his spear and thrust it into Pyro's torso for the final blow. Pyro's body turned red and began fading away.

"We did it,"Gyuni cheered.

----------

"The other golem is disappearing,"Serene grunted, jumping out of the way of Jade's beam attack.

"Perfect, I don't know what happened, but we should be able to deal with this one monster,"AlphaWave said, charging forward towards Pyro.

"Watch ou-!"Hedrei shouted.

It was too late though and the beam made contact with AlphaWave. His character fell to the ground, gray after one of the beams shot through his head.

"Is he going to be okay?"Serene asked, slowly advancing forward between Jade's attacks.

Shadow had taken advantage of the situation and launched a surprise blow to Jade's back, knocking her forward.

"I hope he is,"Hedrei shouted, moving into to attack the golem's legs.

One of the arms of the golem knocked him back, before he could make too many attacks. Hedrei picked himself up, in time to get hit by Shadow was tossed by Jade. Serene hesitated on her next attack, and instead stepped back, not realizing Jade was already charging another beam attack. In a flash of light Serene was taken out as well.

"Damn you!"Hedrei shouted, charging recklessly Jade.

She shot off a beam attack from her other hand, but it narrowly missed Hedrei who didn't even attempt to dodge it.

"I'll make you pay for hurting everyone,"Hedrei yelled, thrusting his sword into the barrel of the cannon of Jade's arm.

A large explosion occured from Jade's arm as the sword entered the cannon. The attack Jade was about to charge up backfired. Hedrei was caught in the explosion and was blown a considerable distance away, but in the split second Shadow managed to see him, Hedrei was gray, meaning the explosion took him out as well. Shadow glanced back at the golem, who was now an armless Jade. Her body was green, and quickly fading away. An expression of pain was frozen on her face as she disappeared from sight.

----------

"Where could he be?"Skyld asked aloud, as the remaining members of Team R left the second odd room they found.

"This place is too big,"Mohi replied, trying not to sound too pessimistic.

Skyld suddenly froze.

"You have an idea?"Mohi asked.

"I just recieved a message from Orion. It seems his team is okay, and they managed to defeat Pyro. Afterwards he tried to contact Hedrei, the leader of Team G, but it wasn't going through. He tried the rest of the team and only managed to contact Shadow, who said Jade was defeated, but he was the only one left,"Skyld explained.

"So that means we're down four people, three people from team G and Shot from our team. Then we don't what happened to Zero,"Mohi commented, aggrevated.

"I told team A about Zero, they're going to the entrance now,"Skyld said. "Meanwhile let's keep looking, we have to find Jugatsu before it gets too long."

"When we find Ryo, we'll probably have to fight Twilight,"Mohi said grimly, following Skyld.

"If we have to fight Twilight, we'll just have to have someone escape with Ryo while the other two old her back,"Demon said, leaving the obvious question hanging around the air.

There was a silence as everyone continued to down the hallway, looking into the doors.

"Whose going to get Ryo and get out?"Mohi finally asked after the silence continued to eat at him.

"Jugatsu is my friend, but Coinchii is yours,"Skyld said, his speed slowing down.

"I thought this might happen,"Demon said, his eyes closed.

Skyld and Mohi turned towards them.

"I would usually go by my common sense, but...I guess I'll just have to hold Twilight off for as long as possible while both of you escape,"Demon said.

"You can'-"Mohi tried to start.

"Let's be honest, Ryo is closer to you, Mohi, than he is to me. Jugatsu is close to Skyld. It would be pointless for either of you to stay behind to face what's probably going to be our death just to save the other. Both of you will get your friends and get out,"Demon said, being unusually talkative.

"Dylan,"Mohi said, being unable to stand what his friend was saying.

Demon continued ahead of the two.

"He's right,"Skyld said to Mohi.

"I'm not going to leave Demon back there to get killed,"Mohi responded, turning angrily towards Skyld.

"I meant, it would be pointless of us to die just to save our friends. So instead of going with his plan, we'll just have to defeat Twilight, won't we,"Skyld replied grinning.

Mohi's eyes opened surprised, then he nodded once.

"I gotta remain calm,"Mohi said to himself, since he was getting worked up.

"Let's catch up to him,"Skyld ordered, running again.

----------

"Skyld said the entrance. It's obvious a battle took place here, but,"Orion said thoughtfully.

"Kiiro and a golem were supposed to be here, Zero stayed behind to fight them. That's what Skyld said, right?"Ace asked, looking around at the various holes of dataless pits, and damaged parts of the room.

"When Pyro died her golems vanished too, so I can understand the golem not being here. But if Zero was killed his body would be around. That means he beat Kiiro, right?"Junhi asked.

"I would think so, but the odd thing is, if he did manage to kill Kiiro wouldn't he have sent Skyld a message?"Orion asked his team.

"I see your point,"Ace replied.

"Maybe he just went to look for Coinchii by himself,"Gyuni suggested.

"Wasn't Shadow ordered to recover the character bodies?"Junhi asked.

"I tried contacting him already, he didn't find a body for Zero,"Orion answered.

"So what are our next orders?"Ace asked.

"Once I finish sending this message to Skyld, we'll split into two teams and search for Jugatsu,"Orion said, before pausing to send the message. "Ace, you'll be in charge of the others, I'll go off on my own to look for Jugatsu."

"Wait, you said teams, one person isn't a team,"Gyuni responded.

"Not to sound obnoxious, but I've been trained for combat, this is probably an even split. Besides I'm in charge of this team, so go,"Orion ordered.

"You heard him,"Ace said to Gyuni.

"Fine,"Gyuni replied, folding her arms.

"I'll still be with you snow bunny,"Cuoka commented, feeling as though Orion was moving in on Gyuni.

The other four members walked through another door.

"I'll search up stairs then,"Orion said to himself, looking upwards.

----------

"I'm sorry to report that Pyro and Jade have fallen,"Kiiro said, kneeling to Twilight's back.

Oblivion was bound to a wall, unable to move, and because of Twilight, unable to speak.

"I'm aware of that,"Twilight replied, looking at Oblivion with patience.

"There are nine others still looking for this player, what should we do?"Kiiro asked.

Twilight began to glow white for a short moment then turned to Kiiro.

"I see. They split into three groups, two of which are closing in. Kiiro, you go after the person traveling alone, I'll go after the other group,"Twilight ordered, as a white ball of energy appeared in front of her.

Kiiro touched the ball of energy and it vanished. Understanding now where her target was she nodded and teleported in a flash of yellow light. Twilight teleported shortly afterwards in her white light.

----------

"What time is it?"Mohi asked, feeling exhausted.

"It's past midnight, easily,"Skyld replied, opening door after door still.

The three suddenly heard a rumbling, causing them to become alert.

"What's that from?"Mohi asked, looking down both ends of the hallway.

Skyld's eyes widened as he felt where it was.

"It's coming from beneath us!"Skyld shouted, running towards the other two.

The floor beneath them suddenly began cracking and an explosion greeted Team R, causing them to fall back to the first floor after working so hard to find a way up.

"It's Twilight!"Skyld heard Mohi say somewhere in the smoke and rubble.

Skyld heard another blast somewhere, before the smoke cleared enough for him to see. He found Twilight floating above the body of Demon, who still appeared to be alive.

"Twilight!"Skyld shouted, grabbing his weapon and walking over the rubble.

Twilight grinned and suddenly Skyld's body froze.

"This isn't fear...this must be what Twilight used on Jugatsu to hold him in mid-air,"Skyld grunted.

"One advantage to this new body is that I have powers beyond what I used to. However until I get that bracelet I'm not going to be able to return my original body,"Twilight said, moving towards Skyld, slowly.

"You mean, return to being Dusk?"Skyld asked, trying to move.

"Yes, part of the AI known as Dawn is still in this body, because of it I can't use these swords. When I obtain the bracelet however, I'll use it to construct my old body, only it'll be as powerful as this one and be able to use these swords,"Twilight said, holding her hands towards Skyld.

"And once you get your old body?"

"After I get my body I'm going to kill as many people as I can in this world before moving to your 'real' world,"Twilight answered, now only a few feet away from Skyld.

"Skyld!"Mohi shouted, suddenly jumping over a pile of rubble.

He was holding the sword Skyld gave him earlier, and was now charging at Twilight, ready to slash. Twilight glanced over, staring at Mohi as he tried to close the distance. Mohi slashed downwards, only to end up face first into the ground. He pushed himself off the ground and looked around for the sword.

"Look out!"Skyld shouted, only to be too late.

Mohi looked up just in time to see the sword fly down point first into himself. There was a scream followed by silence.

"TWILIGHT!"Skyld shouted, infuriated even more.

His anger broke Twilight's grip and he charged forward leaving a decent size slice into Twilight's torso. Twilight floated up through the hole in the roof and hovered on the second floor. A white light emited from the glow and it soon vanished, leaving no wound.

"I still haven't recovered completely...I can't risk fighting,"Twilight said aloud, but it seemed as though it was mostly to herself.

Skyld threw his sword towards Twilight, but she vanished before it reached her. Skyld fell to his knees, looking at Mohi's character which had a sword going through face all the way through his body and into the ground, leaving him skewered. He didn't move until he recieved a message from Orion stating that he had killed Kiiro and found Oblivion. Shortly after that message another message was sent out ordering all the remaining members from each team to withdraw.

----------

"Has someone been sent to Mohi's house, yet?"Code asked, as everyone around the base was scrambling with information and orders to deliver.

"Yes, sir, same with the others who've been defeated, by later today we should have a report of who is in what condition,"someone replied.

"And what of Ryo's state in "The World?", is Jugatsu still in control after all this time?"Code asked.

"It's unconfirmed sir, according to the readings, Ryo should be in control, but according to Kaiyen Oblivion, isn't responsive."

"Then have Kaiyen do something to find out, if Ryo is in control again we can log him out once he gets out of the Deletion Zone,"Code ordered.

"Yes, sir."

"You seem agitated,"Data said, bringing Code something to drink.

"What do you expect with these end results,"Code replied angrily after taking a long sip from the drink. "Three people from Team G were taken out, we're still unsure of Orion's condition, the one who plays Shot. We know Demon and Mohi have taken a beating. Zero has vanished. Out of the 14 people I sent out seven are actually returning in able condition."

"Would you rather none return and the AIs still have Jugatsu?"Data replied, aggrevated by Code's attitude.

"I know...But can you call this successful after taking such losses?"Code countered sullenly.

"We have Jugatsu and Ryo back, plus all of Twilight's AIs are defeated. We should take it easy and regroup, then we'll only have to work on finishing off Twilight,"Data said, patting Code on the back.

"It's Ryo, sir,"someone suddenly shouted. "We've logged him off, and the medic staff are taking him to the clinic."

"Good, order the people who are still logged in to log off as well. Tell them to take a break, and the ones who work directly under me are not to do anything further until I give another command,"Code ordered.

A group of "Yes, sir," followed.

"This should be considered a turning point,"Data said, following Code as he left the computer room.

"If we can recover, I'll consider it a turning point, otherwise it'll just prove to keep going at this pace. Twilight is stronger than the other AIs, way stronger. Even if we continue with the path we've been going on in the end Twilight alone is enough to take us out. Normal training isn't going to work for Ryo anymore, no matter how strict it is. Once Ryo recovers, let me know. Kaiyen, Ryo, and myself are going to have a badly needed meeting,"Code said, stepping into the elevator.

* * *

insert usual ending of reviews/comment/whatever I gotta get back to doing the math homework I took a break from. Look forward to the next chapter 


	32. Chapter 32:Break

Okay, it's been awhile since I've updated, but I've been making some awesome progress in AIC, so you can look forward to the next chapter this weekend if I remember/get a chance. Good news and bad news. Good news is, plot advancement cheer. Bad news, after that much of a plot advancment, be ready for some loosely plot chapters with the intentions of entertainment and the lead into the next arc of the story, which may end up being the last arc. I can't say, because I write as I go along so it'll be a surprise. Anyways, enjoy.

* * *

"So can we confirm Twilight is on the move?"Momiri asked Code as the two discussed the aftermath of the invasion on the AIs base.

"That or she's made a new base. We've had our eyes on the Deletion Zone and there hasn't been any activity since last week,"Code replied.

"I see, and how about the people who were in the assult?"Momiri asked.

"It's grim to say. As you know when fighting an AI stats don't matter, but thanks to the fact number damage still occurs, the characters will die before the player takes too much, and once the player gets the gameover screen they're safe. They'll still take some damage in real life, but they won't end up in a coma. We had four who fell into a coma: Mohi, Serene, AlphaWave, and Shot. Demon took severe damage to various parts of his body and is in the hospital now. Hinoja suffered severe damage to his upper torso, arms, and head, but he's alive, although in critical condition,"Code answered.

"According to the first report we recieved Zero was supposed to be fighting Kiiro, but he vanished and Kiiro was finished off by Orion later. You've still yet to explain that,"Momiri stated, turning towards Zero.

"I was doing my best, holding off both Kiiro and that golem thing, but when the Golem vanished Kiiro ran. Since I didn't know the area too well she managed to get away,"Zero replied, not used to sitting around.

"Where were you afterwards?"Code asked.

"You guys make it sound like I did something wrong, I was looking for Kiiro when Twilight probably jammed my communication. I don't have a player so I'm affected more than everyone else,"Zero defended.

"Very well,"Momiri sighed.

"So what'll be the next step?"Zero asked.

"The next step is probably going to be reorganizing ourselves. We need to gather everyone we can use who are still okay, then see who will recover quickly, and when we have what forces we can get, probably focus on what will be the next step,"Code answered.

"So basically despite the fact four AIs were killed and we recovered Jugatsu we're still forced to an idle state, fantastic,"Zero commented with sarcasm.

"Grim news aside, Code, what of the people who made it out of the assult with little to no injury?"Momiri asked, ignoring Zero's comment.

"Ryo's been in control of his body ever since the incident, he's been informed as to what occured. Orion is on stand-by along with the most of the people working beneath me. Some of the people I've ordered back to working, but for the most part on my side I'm still waiting for everything to return to a state where we can continue to march ahead,"Code replied.

"I see. CC Corp is in a similar situation, with Christine and Remial in charge the chance of "The World" being shut down is less than it was last time, but if the head of CC Corp decides to shut it down, there's nothing they can do but comply. It's been hectic with the media. Christine has managed to reduce the number of injuries through various protective means, but there are still people who are unrelated being injured and the media knows it has something to do with "The World". Then there are all the rumours floating around the BBS and internet."

"So am I correct in saying that the people who can fight as of now consist of Skyld, AnakinseZ, the remaining members of ERS, and through AnakinseZ the rest of October?"Code asked.

"Well, there's still Zero, Miryo, Ryo, Orion, but I'm guessing you take those as a given. For October though..."Momiri began before slowing down on October,"I'd prefer we leave them out. Not that I don't trust them, but it's just too many people to watch after and although we kept most of the information away from the October troops at the Quad C negotiations, information still leaked out about that. That took a lot of effort to cover up after the rumours hit the public."

"Understood, so then our final roster consists of Miryo, Orion, Skyld, Zero, AnakinseZ, Ryo, Shadow, Ace, and Junhi,"Code stated.

"What about the other two? Cuoka and Gyuni are normal players so it's up to them whether or not they wish to help, but we could also consider them,"Momiri replied.

"So nine to 11 people and considering who we have amongst those 11 I'd say our overall strength should be decent, but first we should get Skyld and Ryo since those two have the most experience fighting Twilight."

"I've mentioned such things to Skyld before, but it's as if just remembering how powerful she is makes him uneasy, perhaps you'll see it when we mention it to him,"Momiri said, feeling as though she was guilty of something.

----------

Code got out of his seat and walked out of the computer room. Usually full of busy people from the data team, but as of his order last week it had become an empty place. Upon the order it seemed to Ryo that two different groups emerged, one group which welcomed the stand-by, giving them a break they enjoyed, and a the second group which seemed nervous probably realizing the gravity of the situation.

Ryo was laying on his bed thinking when Code walked in.

"I'm having a meeting with Momiri, we decided to call you and Skyld in to discuss something,"Code stated.

"You came all the way to the living quarters just to get me?"Ryo asked, getting up and walking to Code.

"Usually I use someone from the data team as an assistant, but since most people are on stand-by I've been forced to do things like this lately,"Code responded, a hint of fatigue in his voice.

"Are you going to spike your hair again?"Ryo asked suddenly, as they were walking down the hallway.

"Huh?"Code asked, surprised by such a rediculous question.

"Well, ever since you've stopped spiking it you've looked even more like me and it's not that big of a deal, but it leaves a wierd feeling in the back of my head,"Ryo answered.

"Be serious,"Code ordered, although with the used tone of voice it didn't sound like an order.

"No point in getting so bent out of shape by what happened. Of course I regret being unable to do anything, and being the cause of everyone's injury, but I'm still holding on to the vow I made when Sakura was hurt. I plan on taking out the AIs, making them pay for what they did,"Ryo replied, as they approached the elevator.

"The four AIs responsible were already taken out, so doesn't that mean the vow is over?"Code asked, as the two stepped into the elevator.

"It all depends on how you look at it,"Ryo began,"If it wasn't for my body, Jugatsu wouldn't have been able to control me, get kidnapped, and make the rescue thing happen, so since I was a part of the reason the AIs were defeated, even though I didn't actually take part in the fighting, I still consider it as though I fulfilled part of the vow. Then there's the fact other people were hurt during the process so I have to work even harder to make the last AI pay for her crimes."

Code chuckled at Ryo's response as they left the elevator and began walking towards the computer room.

"Sometimes you're just like a kid, but I suppose kids still have traits that are better an adults,"Code said.

"I'm turning 16 soon, I'm closer to being an adult,"Ryo responded, feeling insulted.

"When's your birthday?"Code asked.

Ryo blinked, not expecting the question."My birthday is April 20th,"Ryo answered.

"Exactly six months since you've been playing "The World" and since the main portion of the madness began,"Code said with a chuckle, putting his hand on the wall to open the doorway to the computer room.

"It is?"Ryo asked, surprised.

"Yeah, you got your account October 20 last year, it's been a little over three months since then,"Code answered, as he got back on his computer.

_Wow, it feels like a countdown and we now have less than half remaining...That would be some birthday present, but I don't think I'd want this to go on for another three months. _Ryo thought as he logged on.

----------

As soon as Coinchii appeared in Mac Anu he was teleported into another area. He looked around realizing it was the place where Code made the image of Jugatsu. It was gone now, but Coinchii still recognized the spot. He looked around, this was the first time he actually had a chance to do so of the area. It was a dead end at the back of a narrow path. The buildings made a wall to three sides, with the exception of the narrow path, but the fourth side was open to the water and to a boat that was tied to land. Momiri was sitting on the edge of the stone walk way, Zero was in the tied up boat, and Skyld was leaning against a near by wall.

"This is actually a nice place,"Coinchii commented, as we sat on the edge in a style similar to Momiri.

"Let's get on to the point we summoned you two,"Code said.

_He's always so serious when he talks to us like this. _Coinchii thought to himself.

"Yes, the reason you two were summoned is because you two have had the most experience with Twilight and we need a serious estimate of her power,"Momiri said, following Code's statement.

_Hmm, I wonder if it's because he doesn't leave any hints about his real life self, or if he just wants the people who don't know him, to think he's some serious person._

"Momiri,"Skyld began,"you know how powerful Dusk was, Twilight is easily several times stronger, I can't even estimate her current strength,"Skyld said, with a hint of worry in his speech. He continued," The most we ever saw from Dusk consisted of energy blasts and levitation, but Twilight...Twilight's powers are way beyond that, and from the various comments of the late AIs and from the last comment she said during our confrontation, she still hasn't completely recovered from the events that took place last time."

"When you say last time, you mean the events where Jugatsu had his body?"Code asked.

"Yeah, the Twilight Swords incident,"Momiri answered.

"I believe during the fight that took place in the Deletion Zone, we weren't even fighting her at her full **un**recovered power, because before the raid there was the event where she did that 'Data Absorbtion' on Aqua, and before vanishing she said something about that taking more energy than she thought and that Jugatsu was to be kept in holding until she had enough energy to perform another Data Absorbtion. At the end of my fight with her, I believe her tired state was the reason I was able to break through her psychic grip that stopped me from moving. And as we know from the negotiations she's capable of beam attacks that are rediculously large. I get the feeling though, that in an all out fight, she wouldn't waste her time with attacks like those. It's like those attacks are just something she uses to toy with us since they don't use much of her energy and since she's still recovering."

"From what you've experience how would you rate her power on a rate of one to 100?"Code asked.

"That sounds like a question I would ask,"Coinchii said under his breath.

"In comparison to?"Skyld asked.

"One being a level one player, and 100 being someone outside of "The World" and tampering with data,"Code answered.

"Probably in the 90's...at her current level."

"And how would you rate you, Jugatsu, Ryo, AnakinseZ, and Zero?"

"Me...46 or so, Jugatsu from the past, probably 60's, but now I'd probably guess around 40's as well. Ryo...Perhaps 30's, no offense."

"Right, no offense,"Coinchii commented.

"AnakinseZ is pretty much on my level of skill, but with the weapon difference...Probably the same score as myself, give or take a few points, then finally, Zero... He has a good range of rare event weapons, plus has been in the game longer than anyone else I've met, and since he exists only in "The World" he probably has better control over a character as well...So I'd have to rate him at higher 50's or lower 60's, but even with her current handicap, Twilight would still be a nearly impossible foe to beat,"Skyld said, finishing grimly.

"I'd like to say that it isn't that bad, or you're underestimating yourselves, but I can't. You and Jugatsu are really the only ones who've had a glimpse of what Twilight can do,"Momiri said, sullenly.

"I know he's underestimating me, lower 60's,"Zero commented, folding his arms and grinning confidently.

"All I can say is, if you really think the situation is like that, then the only solution is to make sure you're prepared and raise your own score,"Momiri said, with a uneasy smile.

"Where's Venus by the way?"Coinchii asked, finally realizing Momiri's assistant was absent.

"While this is easily the most important problem in "The World" we still have to take care of the minor problems normal players face,"Momiri answered, indicating Venus was off doing normal Game Administrator work.

"I believe that's enough for today's meeting,"Code said, concluding the meeting.

"Yes, for now we've discussed enough,"Momiri replied, standing up, and waving to everyone before warping away somewhere.

"Well with that over I'm out of here,"Zero said, jumping out of the boat and walking away.

"Coinchii,"Skyld said after Zero had left.

"What?"Coinchii replied.

"This is first time I've seen you since the incident five days ago,"Skyld said, closing his eyes.

"Yeah, even though it's only been five days, it seems as though they lasted forever, the raid was a victory, but the cost was high and it was my fault,"Coinchii replied.

"Not only that, but I just wanted you to know, that I feel responsible for your friends. Demon, Zero, Mohi, and Shot were in my team during the raid, and as I'm sure you've been told two of them are in a coma now, and Demon is in the hospital. I feel like I've failed at my job and wanted to apologize,"Skyld stated.

"It's as much your fault as it is mine, don't worry about feeling sorry, just worry about getting back at Twilight,"Ryo said, holding his fist up.

"That's typical Coinchii, normally he acts like a child, but every now and then he says something with meaning,"Cuoka said walking in with Gyuni.

"What are you guys doing here?"Coinchii asked.

"We saw Zero on the way out and asked him about you, we've been worried for the last five days,"Gyuni said, stepping in front of Cuoka.

"So what's the word with the AIs?"Cuoka asked, putting his arm around Gyuni.

"Not in front of people!"Gyuni screamed, pushing his arm off.

"Are you two?"Coinchii began to say with a smirk on his face.

"Maybe,"Gyuni said, turning away from the others blushing.

Cuoka chuckled.

"We're still idle as of now, but we'll make sure you're informed of anything. Everything is still kind of unorganized,"Skyld said, answering Cuoka's question.

"So have you two met in the real world yet?"Coinchii asked, interested in the new couple.

"We live a decent distance apart but we meet up in the real world every now and then, Gyuni's cute in the real world too,"Cuoka said, grinning.

"Quiet!"Gyuni complained, easily embaressed which Coinchii was surprised to find out.

"Enough of that,"Gyuni responded, still blushing,"Let's go do something and change the topic, since you have a break why not enjoy it Coinchii?"

"That's true, this is the first time in awhile I've had a break from doing some kind of work or training,"Coinchii replied, realizing her point, and allowing her to change the subject.

"First thing is first though,"Cuoka said clearing his throat.

Coinchii looked him curious.

"The cats out of the bag about you being Oblivion,"Cuoka began with a chuckle,"and I was defeated by Oblivion."

Coinchii smiled nervously."It's part of my training, I can't help it,"he defended.

"That aside, you and me are going to have a rematch,"Cuoka declared, pointing at Coinchii.

"We are?"Coinchii complained.

Cuoka nodded and sent out a party invite which Coinchii accepted.

"Hey wait, when did you ask Gyuni out?"Coinchii asked, realizing something suddenly.

"A little over two weeks, it was after the negotiation thing,"Cuoka answered, causing Gyuni to blush and hit him in the back of the head.

"Then why were you hitting on Miryo the other day?"Coinchii asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You didn't take tha-"Cuoka began to say before cutting off.

"You did what?"Gyuni asked, an aggitated look on her face.

"It wasn't anything serious, Coinchii's joking, right?"Cuoka protested turning to Coinchii.

"Yeah, I'm just kidding,"Coinchii answered, satisfied with his small revenge at Cuoka's challenge.

Gyuni sighed in relief and the three went off to a best a dungeon. They appeared in a snowy field with various statues, plants, and other assorted objects scattered about the landscape. Compared to the level of the three characters the dungeon level was pretty low, but the intent was for a casual dungeon anyways.

Monsters soon approached them as they made their way to the dungeon, Cuoka volunteered to take them out, and made quick work, with a few hits each the monsters died and blew away as though made of dust. Taking turns for each confrontation the three cleared the dungeon fairly quickly and recieved a few items from the Gott Statue which they could sell for money. The three returned to town after the dungeon and decided to think of another easy task to do since they still had plenty of time in the day.

"That's right, I heard in order to keep player's attentions away from the AIs they've been holding a lot of events, do they have any happening any time soon?"Coinchii asked, sitting on the stairs before the Chaos Gate.

"You know you shouldn't talk about that out loud,"Gyuni scolded.

"My bad, I'm not used to actually having free time lately,"Coinchii stated, scratching the back of his head.

"He does have a point though, I was wondering why there had been a lot of events as late,"Cuoka said, putting his hand on his chin in a thoughtful gesture.

Coinchii nodded. "That's why we should check at least one out, by the time the problem resolves we'll have missed out on all the events and there probably won't be as many,"Coinchii said.

"I'll go check,"Gyuni said, logging off real quick.

There was a pause before either of the two said anything.

"So what's she look like in real life? I'd be surprised if she looked the same as her character,"Coinchii asked.

"She's amazing. She's taller than her character, but her face is kinda similar. She's the kind of woman who looks good in short hair,"Cuoka explained using his hands to aid in his explanation,"her body is like an athlete's almost, but not overly muscular, just enough to tell she has muscles without ruining her figure, and as for...you know,"Cuoka said, holding his hands at chest level, while chuckling,"She's a 10 out of 10 easily."

"That wasn't exactly the description I was looking for, but..."Coinchii replied with a sweatdrop.

"If you ever need help with the Fallen Angel, let me know,"Cuoka said, snickering.

"Is it really okay for you to still use that pet name for Miryo?"Coinchii asked, with a sarcastic grin.

"As long as my Snow Bunny isn't here, besides it's not like I really mean anything serious,"Cuoka answered.

The two heard Gyuni log back in.

"And that's why I don't waste time with a grunty,"Cuoka stated, shrugging his shoulders.

"What?"Coinchii asked puzzled.

"You're hopeless,"Cuoka responded.

"Anyways,"Coinchii began, turning to Gyuni,"What's the news on events?"

"There are three we can do, ones a dungeon event, which we can do anytime today, the second one is an event taking place a little bit later which is a tournament that consists of three parts, and the last one is a monster event where they set a powerful monster loose in a field and players get to mob it until it dies."

"Let's do the battle event later, since we know Coinchii has a good amount of experience fighting other people. For now let's do the dungeon and depending on what time it is after that we can try that monster event until this tournament is supposed to start,"Cuoka suggested.

"Well the tournament event takes place in about an hour, considering how long a dungeon takes if we're at the right level, we probably won't have time to do a dungeon with various twists in it,"Gyuni replied.

"Kay then let's do another simple dungeon,"Coinchii said, as Cuoka sent a party invintation to Gyuni.

----------

With the simple dungeon of the way the three headed to the tournament event. The map was completely flooded, people covered every bit of land as far as Coinchii could see. Unable to move the three remained stationary until Venus's voice finally appeared. The chatter of the other players soon quieted down allowing Venus to speak.

"For those who wish to compete in the tournament, please wait just a moment. Anyone not interested in taking place please leave within the next five minutes,"was all Venus said before going silent again.

The talking picked up again, and since there was no room, it was nothing but talking. Coinchii could hear various voices, half of the people seemed to be complaining about the five minute wait before the event started, others engaged in casual conversation with their teammates until the tournament started. After every minute that followed Venus's first message, she repeated the message until the time limit was reached. The crowd finally quieted again as Venus began the explanation of the tournament.

"It'll be in three stages, the first stage will have a group of custom made goblins, only teams that can defeat the goblins will be in the actual tournament. All the parties in this area will be divided into their own area. After every party has either defeated the goblins or been defeated we'll move to the second stage where the remaining parties will be divided and each team will have seperate one-on-one matches against another party. If the two parties have different numbers then the team with the large number of people will have to decide who will be fighting. We will continue stage two until the number of teams have been reduced to a certain number. Stage three will be the simple party verses party tournament,"Venus explained.

Coinchii could hear lots of people giving positive feed back, probably most of which came from the fact the tournament was finally started. Shortly after she finished talking various teams began warping. When Coinchii, Cuoka, and Gyuni were finally warped they found themselves in a simple square room.

"So where are the goblins?"Cuoka asked, getting ready for a fight.

"They'll probably appear shortly,"Coinchii replied, getting his sword ready.

As soon as Coinchii finished his statement three goblins appeared in front of them.

"You just support us we can handle these guys,"Cuoka said, charging forward.

The three goblins materialized showing themselves to Cuoka and Coinchii who tripped over laughing. One goblin had black armor and a cape similar to Skyld the Master Knight, the second wore clothes similar to AnakinseZ's leader of October, and the last goblin had on a robe that was the same thing Momiri typically wore.

While in the two players were busy laughing, the Skyld goblin took the lead and attacked Cuoka with it's small sword. Despite it's rediculous appearance it did a considerable amount of damage. The laughing quickly stopped when the AnakinseZ goblin hit Coinchii as well. Gyuni was forced to heal the two after the first hits on both of them. With the realization that the goblins weren't something to take lightly the two fighters supressed their laughter and got ready to seriously fight.

The AnakinseZ goblin attempted to slash down on Coinchii, but Coinchii stepped out of the way and swung his sword horizontally hitting the Goblin in the stomach and making him fly to the wall on the other side of the room. It didn't even slow the goblin down, though, as the goblin was back up and charging at Coinchii again within seconds. It slammed its sword down, missing Coinchii who sidestepped, but it quickly followed up swinging its sword sideways hitting Coinchii with the side of its blade. Coinchii pushed himself up, two more hits would be enough to finish him off. He got his sword ready for an attack while he waited for Gyuni to cure him, but even after the AnakinseZ goblin had failed to make two more attacks and was sent to the other side of the room, by yet another attack of Coinchii's the 'Ol Repth' wasn't heard.

"What's going on, Gyuni?"Coinchii asked, fending off another attack from the goblin.

"The Momiri goblin won't leave me alone,"Gyuni said, healing herself as the Momiri goblin cast another spell on her. Gyuni managed to get in a melee hit or two before the Momiri goblin cast another spell, but she had to cure herself again with every spell. "Try to avoid getting hit,"

Cuoka was probably having the least amount of trouble. The Skyld goblin was a short monster with a short weapon so it was easy for Cuoka to use his hight to his advantage. He would kneel down and punch the goblin before it could attack him then jumped back. After a few repetitive actions by Cuoka the Skyld goblin soon became fustrated, and even though it showed no signs of getting weaker, it began charging at Cuoka who was still fast enough to continue his style of hit-and-run attacks.

Coinchii slashed downwards at the same time the AnakinseZ goblin did, both hit eachother, before jumping back.

"One more hit,"Coinchii muttered to himself, thrusting his sword towards the goblin and managing a hit.

The goblin picked itself but had a bit of trouble this time allowing Coinchii to get up and swing upwards. The attack sent the goblin flying up where it hit the roof and began to fall. During it's fall it was intercepted by a sideways slash from Coinchii and was knocked a few feet away where it finally turned gray and blew away like dust.

Not taking time to savor the victory Coinchii charged over slashing into the Momiri goblin. Once the Momiri goblin began focusing on Coinchii, Gyuni finally managed to heal him, which proved to be vital as the Momiri goblin's magic did more damage than the AnakinseZ goblin's attacks. Coinchii also believed the this goblin had the most hitpoints. This goblin was taking hit after hit, but didn't show any signs of weakening, also the spells couldn't be interupted so during the stream of blows that continued from Coinchii the Momiri goblin continued to send a stream of various spell on Coinchii.

Cuoka jumped over the Skyld goblin and spun around kicking up in the air. He brought his elbow down on the Skyld goblin as it flew into the air and it, at last, perished once it hit the ground.

"I'm running out of SP, hurry and kill it,"Gyuni said, casting healing spell after healing spell.

With Cuoka's help the Momiri goblin finally revealed signs the attacks were doing something, and after a few minutes of pure slashing, punching, kicking, and hacking at the Momiri goblin, it finally gave out, and died.

The party sighed with relief finally having best the goblins. They were automatically warped out of the room and back to the field where the found probably less than half the people from before.

"And that makes everyone, all the people standing here managed to defeat the goblin prelimaries,"Venus stated, while typing something on her trademark clipboard.

"We have 102 parties at the moment, meaning 38 parties will have to be eliminated in the second stage before we can continue. To be fair, the 76 parties with the worst times will be the ones to compete,"Venus ordered. She added that the matches would be chosen at random and people began warping away again.

Coinchii found himself with Cuoka and Gyuni in room similar to the goblin match.

"Your opponant's team has one person, please pick an appropriate number of people to fight,"a voice said.

"Someone who managed to defeat those goblins by himself,"Coinchii commented, looking at the other two.

"I'm not fighting, that's for sure,"Gyuni said, sitting down.

"Coinchii has more experience in fighting, I think he should go,"Cuoka said nodding.

"But you had less trouble with that goblin than I did,"Coinchii countered.

"So then let's Momiri decide,"Cuoka said grinning.

Cuoka bent down and whispered something into Gyuni's causing her to turn red.

"I say Coinchii fights,"Gyuni said, covering her embaressed face.

"What did you say?"asked Coinchii, accusingly.

"Nothing,"Cuoka replied, chuckling as both him and Gyuni vanished.

The other person appeared in their place. It was an archer.

"I haven't seen an archer in awhile,"Coinchii said, getting his weapon ready.

"And you'll wish you didn't see me today,"the archer said, smirking.

Coinchii ran forward, whacking away the first area the archer shot. He slashed downwards, but the archer jumped out of the way and in the process of dodging hit Coinchii with an arrow. Coinchii knocked the next arrow away and ran towards archer, but again he missed, getting hit as the archer dodged.

"You're just like those goblins,"the archer said as Coinchii knocked away a half-hearted attacked.

_If I keep charging at him he'll keep dodging and striking, I have to corner him. _Coinchii thought, deflecting arrows unable to do anything else without getting in close.

"I'm not some goblin,"Coinchii said, knocking away and putting his sword away.

The archer hesitated at his next shot, but quickly regained his composer, unleashing another arrow at his now unarmed opponant. Coinchii ducked under it, closing the distance of space. After dodging a second arrow Coinchii made it close enough to knock the bow to the side and afterwards flips his opponant to the ground. Coinchii pulled out his sword and thrust the sword through the archer, doing a decent amount of damage, but not enough to kill the archer. The archer pushed the sword away and grabbed for his bow, but was cut off as Coinchii knocked the bow further away and attacked the archer again. Instead of reaching the bow again the archer quickly got off the ground.

"I see, you just used Oblivion's style of fighting, using melee until you have a chance to use your weapon,"the archer said.

Coinchii found it amusing that the archer mentioned Oblivion, but wasn't going to stop. He slashed down again, missing the archer as it jumped sideways. After three attacks missing and the archer not making a move for his bow, Coinchii realized he would have to go weaponless until he made another opportunity to use his weapon. Coinchii put his weapon in its holder on his back and stepped forward attempting two punches on the archer. The archer however dodged both and jumped into Coinchii's stomach knocking him on his back. Coinchii tried to get the archer off, but the archer wouldn't move. After struggling for a minute or two the archer continued to stay there.

"Why don't you do something besides hold me down?"Coinchii asked, knowing he couldn't do anything.

"It becomes a waiting game like this. If I were to release and get my bow the fight could go either way, with this whoever gets bored and logs out first loses,"the archer said, a smirk across his face.

"That's incredibly lame,"Coinchii said, annoyed by such a cheap strategy.

"Nothing you can do to stop me,"the archer said, continueing to stay on Coinchii.

_I have to get him off of, but how? _Conchii thought to himself.

The two remained in that position for a few minutes before Coinchii finally came up with an idea.

"I doubt this''ll work, but,"Coinchii said under his breath sighing.

"Huh?"the archer responded, turning his ear to Coinchii.

Coinchii grunted as he threw his head upward, hitting the archer in the side of the head. The force caused the the archer to slip off Coinchii's arms, allowing Coinchii to push him the rest of the way off.

"I can't believe it worked,"Coinchii muttered, pulling out his weapon and slashing at the archer.

The end of the sword hit the archer as it dodged the attack, causing it to spin and slip on the ground. Coinchii attacked one more time while the archer was on the ground and finally obtained his victory. He was warped away after the body of his opponent vanished and he found himself next to Cuoka and Gyuni who stepped away from eachother as Coinchii reappeared.

"You guys are lucky,"Coinchii commented, aggrevated.

"Wow, Coinchii, you've been the last team to finish up both of the first two stages, not looking to good,"they heard Venus saying.

Various people started muttering, a few people laughed, and Coinchii felt insulted.

"Alright then, let's quickly get into the first round of the tournament, remember, your opponents are random, so don't blame me if the pairings are bad,"Venus said enthusiasticly.

People began getting warped again. This time though, instead of the square rooms they were on a stone platform surrounded by darkness.

"Rules are simple, do what you need to do defeat your opponent, but if you fall off the side of the arena you'll return to the field, and it'll count as your death. In which case hope your team doesn't fall off or die,"Venus's voice said.

The opposing team was made up of two blademasters, one female and one male, then a male heavyblade.

The male blademaster made the first move, leading his party towards Coinchii's party. Gyuni began pulling out scrolls, doing damage to the other team, but they didn't result in too much damage. Coinchii ended up facing the female blademaster and the heavyblade. Between the continuos blocking, Coinchii managed to get in a few attacks. He couldn't rely too much on support as the male blademaster targeted Gyuni and was targeted by Cuoka. Ignoring Cuoka's attacks, the blademaster continued to attack Gyuni who was running and healing as fast as she could in order to survive.

Once the male blademaster was down, Cuoka and Gyuni were finally able to support Coinchii and the other two were taken down relativly quickly for an overall easy victory. The three reappeared in the field where a few other people stood.

"Ha, we weren't last this time,"Coinchii said, punching the air while feeling accomplished.

"We just need to get warmed up is all,"Cuoka said, imitating Coinchii's air punch.

"Exactly,"Coinchii replied, nodding at Cuoka.

The two of the laughed, but it gradually turned into a sigh as they realized it really wasn't something that funny.

"At least when we were last we didn't have to wait,"Coinchii said, sitting down.

Cuoka and Gyuni followed Coinchii's action.

"So, what's Cuoka look like in real life?"Coinchii asked Gyuni to pass the time.

Cuoka smirked and looked at Gyuni who was looking upwards, thinking.

"How to describe him...I'm not entirely sure how to,"Gyuni said, her eyes rolling downwards.

Cuoka sighed disappointed.

"Alright, time for the second round,"Venus shouted, from where Coinchii was still unsure.

The three appeared on the platform they were on in the first round. The good thing was, they only had one opponant this time, the bad thing was it was Exion.

"What're you doing here?"Coinchii asked, remembering their previous encounter.

"Don't speak like your so familiar with me,"she replied, blushing.

"Surely you remember the fight la-"Coinchii paused, remember he was Oblivion at the time.

"La-?"Exion asked, trying to look cute.

Cuoka opened his mouth, but Gyuni tapped him in the back of the his head with her staff, causing him to close it.

"I wanna try her by myself,"Coinchii said, unsatisfied with Jugatsu's intereference last time.

"You sure that's a good thing to do, last time you faught her Jugatsu appeared,"Gyuni said, low enough so Exion wouldn't hear.

"So we starting or not?"Exion asked, keeping the innocent look on her face.

"One minute,"Coinchii replied, turning to Gyuni,"It'll be fine, I'll be sure back off if it gets too intense and let you guys come in."

"If you say so, Oblivion,"Cuoka said, shoving Coinchii playfully.

"Right,"Coinchii said, turning to Exion,"Ready."

Coinchii drew his blade out and charged forward, Exion following his movements. They met in the middle of the arena where Exion effortlessly shoved away Coinchii's blade while landing a punch with her other arm. Coinchii was knocked on his back a few feet back.

_That's right, Coinchii's statistically weaker than Oblivion..._ he thoughy, getting back up. Coinchii smirked, putting his weapon on his back again. Exion's eyes seemed to widen as if she already knew what he was doing. Coinchii took two steps forwards before extending his other leg forward quickly in an attempt to trip Exion. Exion however jumped back then charged forward once she landed. Coinchii pushed himself up and launched his fist forward, hitting Exion as she landed a blow on him. Both of them took a few steps back, Coinchii already had a decent amount of damage from Exion's first two hits, but she still had all of her hitpoints.

"I understand it,"Exion said, pointing at Coinchii."I know what's going on."

"Did she realize I'm Oblivion? Maybe trying to use that tactic as Coinchii wasn't a good idea after all,"Coinchii said under his breath.

"You must have seen the fight I had with Oblivion. He must've undergone a good amount of training to fight like that, but I can tell your just trying to copy it because he almost beat me,"Exion stated, her hand still pointed at Coinchii.

_I'm the same person, what do you mean I'm trying to copy Oblivion? _Coinchii complained in his head.

"Whatever happened at the end saved my record though, so technically I still didn't get that loss,"Exion said, folding her arms, sighing in relief.

Coinchii's eyes widened as he grabbed his weapon out. She let her guard down and if Coinchii wanted a chance to win it would have to be now. His sword banged against the ground as he brought it upwards in a slash. Exion opened her eyes, but didn't have enough time to react and his hit dead on by the large blade. Coinchii put all of his strength into his attempt at finishing this with the one strike. He trippled his effort to continue the swing once he caught Exion on it. She flew back a considerable distance from the half-toss, half-attack, but managed to still land on her feet. Coinchii wasted no and charged forward, trying to reduce the space she could gain from moving away from the edge. With another slash Coinchii hoped to knock Exion back the remaining five feet off the edge, but she spun around, kicking his weapon back, and then him. Coinchii stepped back to keep his balance.

"With that big sword you won't be able to strike fast enough to hit me,"Exion said, grinning.

"Then I'll just have to do something other than strike at you,"Coinchii said, standing up.

Exion looked at him wierd after that response, curious as to what he was planning. Coinchii thrust his sword into the platform, blade down and glared at Exion, who was watching his movement. Coinchii then took a few steps backwards, making sure his movements wouldn't give away too much about his plans. Exion brought her hands up to shoulder level, ready to strike or defend, whichever was needed. With one foot extend forward, Coinchii leaped towards his sword grabbing the handle, then with another kick from the ground as he landed he swung around, hitting Exion in the face with his foot. She took a step to keep her balance, but in that time Coinchii had left his sword and tackled Exion. They came even closer to the edge of the arena, but Coinchii still failed to knock her off.

"Pervert,"Exion commented, tossing Coinchii over the edge after he laid on top of her for a moment.

"Can't blame a guy for trying,"Cuoka chuckled, on the other side of the arena.

"I'm not like that,"Coinchii shouted, falling into the darkness.

His sword disappeared with him and he reappeared in the field. _It's up to Cuoka and Gyuni now_. Coinchii thought as he sat in the field. Minutes passed and nothing happened. He looked around, it looked like most of the battles were still going on, even though only 16 parties would be in the next round, he figured probably three or four of the parties were sitting there now. Coinchii decided to pass the time by walking around, hopefully he would find where Venus had been the whole time, but a few minutes after getting up to look around he was suddenly warped out and appeared back in Mac Anu.

"What happened?"Coinchii asked, looking around at the town that replaced the field he was just in.

"Exion beat us,"Cuoka replied bluntly.

"It was fun if anything,"Coinchii said, patting Cuoka on the back.

"So, want to go try that event dungeon?"Gyuni asked the others.

"As long as I'm with you,"Cuoka said, grabbing Gyuni's hands.

"Eh right,"Coinchii replied, with a sweat drop going down his head,"I'm actually hungry, you guys can go ahead, I think I'll go get something to eat."

Coinchii waved as he logged out. It would be rude to take up their 'alone time', he figured.

----------

Ryo took off his helmet and looked around. The computer room was still empty because of the stand-by, and it felt wierd to him. He was used to several people being in it, whether something was happening or not. He patted his empty stomach as he left the room, the doorway disappearing once he walked out.

"There you are, finally."Ryo recognized the voice as Sakura's.

"You were looking for me?"Ryo asked, turning to meet her.

Sakura jumped onto him, giving him a hug.

"I knew you were in the computer room, but I couldn't find it,"Sakura cried, hiding her face in Ryo's shirt.

A sweatdrop fell down Ryo's head.

"That's typical of you,"Ryo commented, patting her on the back.

Sakura rubbed her ace on his shirt, sniffing. Ryo could tell it was an act but he played along.

"I'm going to get something eat, want to come?"Ryo asked, already knowing the answer.

Sakura looked up at him and nodded.

_I wonder if I could get into a relationship like that with Sakura _Ryo thought as they walked to the cafeteria, Sakura clinging to his arm. Ryo closed his eyes. _A normal one I mean. _he thought sighing.

* * *

So, for the record on the print preview this chapter came out to around 9 pages, which is on computer paper, so it's the equivalent of 18 or so pages. Hopefully that'll keep you full of AIC goodness until the next chapter release. Thanks to all those who read, much thanks to those who review, and a special mentioning of the newest persona to review, wmacelharen. Thanks for reading, and while I'm mentioning reviewers, also another thanks goes out to grizzlybiscuit, who in my opinion has an awesome name, but more importantly has given me reviews every few chapters imparting wisdom upon us all. (by all I mean me, and by wisdom I mean general comments) Much thanks, grizzlybiscuit. Oh and while I'm at it, reviews, comments and such welcome and appreciated. Stay tuned for the next chapter. 


	33. Chapter 33:Progress

Kay I'll keep this short, be sure to read the ending author's note for this chapter as it could possibly decide the fate of AIC. Enjoy

* * *

"You know, I did some thinking,"Ryo said to Sakura as they sat in his room.

"Yeah?"Sakura asked, pleased that Ryo called her to his room.

"When I first joined "The World" and this started. According to Code it was the 20th of October, and todays January 30th,"he said, staring outside his window to the woods behind the institute.

"A little over three months,"Sakura replied, watching Ryo.

"The reason I wanted to talk to you,"Ryo began, turning to Sakura,"is because, all in all how far have we come from the start?"

Sakura looked at him puzzled at the kind of question. It was odd for someone to ask a question like that after four AIs died a few days ago. When Ryo could tell Sakura wasn't going to speak, he continued.

"When we first started we were completely oblivious and even though we defeated the AIs, how much have we really learned about them?"Ryo asked, walking over and sitting by her.

"We've learned a lot, haven't we?"Sakura asked, pushing herself up and and sitting next to Ryo.

"I'm not so sure. Lately, the more I think about it, the more I realize I don't know about the AIs. And even though the base is on stand-by, Code would probably be too busy. I'm sure there's information he's leaving out, that he hasn't told us about also,"Ryo said, sighing.

"Then let's ask Kaiyen, he's basically the second Code,"Sakura said, pulling out her cellphone.

"Thinking back, there are basically four groups with four different motives. I used to think it didn't matter as long as we all had the same goal, but I guess that was because I so oblivious to the situation, and at the time it was basically like every person's dream. It used to seem like something interesting, an escape from the normal life. Not that a repetitive life was always bad, but breaking away from the normal was...well new and interesting. I'm sure awhile ago I realized it, but didn't accept the fact. Looking back I see no way to escape it. Sakura, why are we here fighting AIs? Why did we join Code? Do you have the answer?"Ryo asked, having an answer already, but curious as to Sakura's reply.

"I know I'm here because of you. I know I say it a lot, but I really do love you, I'd follow you anywhere to be with you,"Sakura answered, completely serious.

Ryo would've blushed if it wasn't for his current mood. And after a pause he gave his answer.

"At first, I was doing it to basically escape the repetitiveness of my life, it was exciting. That gradually led to me doing it just because I had been swept into it. Then after you, Dylan, Cuoka, and Gyuni were injured I did it for revenge. I'm doing it now, partially because of that reason, but mostly because I just to want protect everyone. Mostly my friends, but also the people who have nothing to do with this mess. I find it pointless for people who have nothing to do us, getting injured because of us. By stopping the first four AIs I suppose that'll end up saving a bunch people from that situation, but Twilight is still loose, so everyone's still at risk,"Ryo said.

"So, who are the four groups?"Sakura asking, closing her cellphone and dropping it on the bed.

"Well when I say our group, I suppose it's basically me and you now. With Suichi in a coma, Dylan being seriously injured again, and Kiane being too young to really by caught into this. I can't really count them as what I consider our group to be now. Our main reason for fighting is really ourself. The next group, would be Code. He really wouldn't gain anything, so why do you think he's doing it?"Ryo asked, as before having his own answer ready.

Sakura closed her eyes, thinking for a moment. When her eyes reopened she had what she thought was the answer. "Thinking back, Code was doing this just for the information, but he's been devoting all of his time into it. I remember when he was nothing more than a mysterious hacker, but since I've gotten to know him, he's more like the person who can't do anything unless it's done completely. So I think, since he started doing this, he's going to see it to the end,"Sakura answered, smiling confidently along with it.

"And his original 'thing' was getting information. It may sound cold, but even when I first joined Code he still seemed interested in information more than the events that happened to people. I believe, more than getting through this thing, he just wants to learn it from every angle, and that he won't be satisfied if any mysteries are left by the end of this,"Ryo said, confining his concerns to Sakura.

Sakura leaned over, putting her head on Ryo's shoulder.

"I know another group would be CC Corp,"Sakura said, leading to the third group.

"They're doing it for two obvious reason. First off being that they're concerned about "The World", and second being it was their fight first, before we arrived."

"Then doesn't that make them like Code? They can't stand the fact they left something unfinished?"Sakura replied, questioning Ryo's logic.

"I think it's different than just unfinished business, to them it's more like something they're responsible for, but because Jugatsu is in me, everyone has to step back allowing way for me."

"Whose the fourth group though?"Sakura asked.

"Everyone else, I suppose. The people who still haven't been caught up in this,"Ryo said, looking up at his ceiling.

"It sounds like you have something you want to do,"Sakura said, with her eyes closed.

"If I could set back time, keeping how far I've come along, I probably wouldn't have joined Code a month ago. It feels like our objectives are struggling to stay together."

"Whatever you decide, I'll be with you."

"Thanks,"Ryo said, feeling somewhat better,"Go ahead, now you can call Kaiyen we'll see what we can learn."

Sakura lifted her head up, grabbing her cellphone. She sent him a message and close her cellphone, half disappointed someone else would ruin the atmosphere. Knocking was heard shortly afterwards.

"Come in,"Ryo said, now sitting on the couch, Sakura next to him still.

Kaiyen stepped inside and sat down on the bed.

"What's up? I got a message from Sakura about wanting to talk?"

"How much further have we actually come in learning about the AIs?"Ryo asked bluntly.

"What do you want to know?"Kaiyen countered, smirking.

Ryo looked down, for whatever reason today, everyone else seemed like a different person than he used to know.

"I'm curious, since we've started we've only learned a few concrete things about the AI's. Like the four AI's were created by Twilight. Twilight whose a mixture of two AIs that took place in an event before I joined "The World". The AIs defy normal game standards. The AIs are dangerous...What else do we know for sure?"Ryo asked.

"If you ask in such a broad way it's hard to think of a response, but I suppose you want to know some of the more technical details?"Kaiyen asked, quickly catching on it wasn't as 'sunny' in the room as it was outside.

Ryo nodded as a response.

"Well, it's probably too late to figure out how the first two AIs actually came to be, but we know pretty much all of the events that took place during the events and how it lead to the situation now,"Kaiyen answered.

"In detail,"Ryo said.

Kaiyen frowned at the slightly bossy attitude from Ryo, but complied with the demand.

"The person inside of you,"Kaiyen began, pointing at at Ryo as he said 'you',"-who we know as Jugatsu, was fighting the AI known as Dusk in a final battle. Dusk had possession of two swords, which from what we can figure are items that, like the AIs, should not exist in "The World". Whatever these swords were for after obtaining them, he still lost Jugatsu who possed the third item that shouldn't exist in "The World" which was a bracelet. Using the power of the bracelet he absorbed the data of the two AIs, then attempted to delete the map which used his character as a source of power for the large scale deletion. During most of the time from the previous incident, the player of Jugatsu, Kaishin, was in a coma, along with other players of "The World". It was odd at first as to why the character Jugatsu was still running around, but when we learned of the bracelet, we discovered that must have been what caused Jugatsu to become an actual person instead of just another character with a person for a player. That aside, with the map deleted it would've appeared in what is now the Deletion Zone.

"Because their data was drained and then everything on the map was deleted the essence of the two AIs ended up being merged, because both were in the bracelet at the time. However being reduced to a state of absolute nothingness meant it would take a long time to recover. Unlike the AIs though, Jugatsu's essence wasn't unable to recover because it was still bound by the game's rules. One thing Jugatsu did manage though was to find a good host for essence, the host being Ryo. By the time Jugatsu reappeared to get into the state he's in now, the AI, which is now known as Twilight, had recovered enough to take a physical form, and use some powers. Powers beyond what she was capable of using as either Dusk or Dawn. And still despite her strength, she still hasn't completely recovered and still tires quickly using any advanced means of power. Jugatsu's recovery has progressed rapidly thanks to the fact he doesn't have a physical form, but is sharing one that's already fine, and doesn't need to recover.

"Before continuing on Twilight and how she created the other four, why don't I focus on what we know of Jugatsu. His essence has basically recovered, but his essence is more...how to word it...not powerful or larger, but it's existance is more than yours, if that makes sense,"Kaiyen said, trying to phrase it right before continuing,"This is both good and bad. At first his essence was completely seperate from you and your body, so it was more distant and as a result it was nothing more than a second person in Ryo, a person who never surfaced more than to talk to Ryo, if what you said true about that. After allowing him access to your body though, you said you weren't able to communicate with him, meaning his essence was as much a part of your body, as your essence is. This where the good and bad part comes in. With Jugatsu now linked to your body, he was able to easily take control as a back-up to your essence. Through this we've learned quiet a lot about what happened before. The downside is though, usually Jugatsu's essence is summoned by you through intensity of either emotion or battle, meaning that intensity is carried to Jugatsu as his essence takes control and while in control if Jugatsu's essence is undergoing intensity your body suffers physically from Jugatsu's foreign essence.

"That's basically all we have on Jugatsu, but we have discovered something as far as essence transfer goes. Imagine your body being a can, and imagine your essence as a blue ball, Jugatsu's essence as a red ball. Normally the blue ball is on top of the red ball, but when you undergo intense situations it's like your ball being pushed in which allows it to fall and allows the red ball to get on top. When going into "The World" or logging out, imagine the can being flipped over. Whichever ball is on bottom will then be on top, and vice-versa. The only thing we haven't figured out though is that, the can only 'flips' if the red ball is on top. If your in control of your body, you'll stay in control during the switch, but if Jugatsu is in control, the switch will surpress him again,"Kaiyen explained, stopping to take a deep breath.

"See, we've learned a lot,"Sakura said, turning to Ryo.

"I suppose...Jugatsu isn't really an AI...though,"Ryo commented.

"It's a lot to explain, I have to make sure my thoughts are organized otherwise it'll be difficult for you guys to understand and I'll end up mixing information in my head,"Kaiyen replied.

"Sorry,"Ryo responded.

"Right, now for Twilight again. We know after a certain point of recovery she managed to make four AIs. We had several theories, but it turned out the AIs were attempts by Twilight to recreate the bracelet. We've confirmed through this that the bracelet, if it still exists, isn't in Twilight's possession, and that Twilight is after the bracelet, despite the fact she still has the Twilight Swords. During the raid into the base we discovered from Skyld that the reason Twilight is after the bracelet is to use it's powers to reconstruct herself. After reconstructing herself she'll then be able to use the swords to complete her original goal, which from what we've gathered from the past event is escaping into the real world. The AIs, however, as you know, are dead. And that's where we're at now,"Kaiyen said, finishing it as though it was a story.

"It's easy to recall events, but what have we actually learned about them?"Ryo repeated, feeling frustrated,"All the data you obtained on those machines while I played, all the stuff we had to do to get information for Code, all the time he spends going over data, the month I've been here, can't you at least come up with more than recalling events!?"Ryo shouted.

"Calm down,"Kaiyen said, understanding where his frustration was coming from.

Sakura wrapped her arms around him, calming him down somewhat, allowing Kaiyen to continue speaking.

"Code goes over three kinds of information. Information like the reasoning behind things, statistical information in order to explain things like when Jugatsu takes over body, and list information. Name things you know Twilight is capable of, power wise,"Kaiyen said.

"Psychic abilities, beam attacks, data absorbtion, and creation of data, also data manipulation,"Ryo replied, having a rough idea of what Kaiyen was getting at.

"If Twilight has the ability to manipulate data, why doesn't she just use it on herself? Because she can't, it's obvious. Why can't she, though?"Kaiyen asked.

Ryo shrugged, not knowing.

"Information like that is also what Code researches, information that may not be relevant, but will be required in order to get the whole picture,"Kaiyen said, pausing afterwards, as he waited for a response from Ryo.

"And, what's he come up with?"Ryo said after a silence followed.

It was like the two fighting a battle of reasoning, and Ryo was being beaten badly.

"It's not data manipulation, so much as data reconfiguration. Just like you have settings in "The World" you can change for minor things to your playing experience, everything in "The World" breaks down into set of different things, monster image, strength, abilities, and such. The images you see for buildings or NPC's are just one of a group of images that work together to give the feeling you're in a town, or that give you the feeling you're in a grassy field. Code believes it's not data manipulation, but the ability to change the 'settings' of anything in "The World". And as for other powers, Code has been putting work into figuring out what would be possible and what could be possible based on what little information he can actually get.

"When you listed off abilities you forgot teleportation. Nobody told you, and few people know, but when Jugatsu took you over seven days ago, when you were fighting Exion, you teleported, using the same kind of teleportation the AIs use. It broke through the game's normal boundries and allowed you to warp directly from one field to another. Code didn't want you to know yet, probably because he wasn't certain, but...you want to finish this?"Kaiyen asked.

Ryo's eyes widened."Originally we thought Twilight was after me because of Jugatsu's essence, but if I used the ability of an AI, the only explanation would be that the bracelet exists with Jugatsu's essence."

"More than likely, that's the case. The thing Code's really worried about though is whether or not Twilight knows of this."

"You mean Twilight might be after Jugatsu because he had the bracelet when he had a physical form, or Twilight might be after be after Jugatsu because she knows he still has the power of the bracelet,"Ryo realized.

"This also brought up another uncertainty to Code. This was the first sign that the bracelet still existed, and that it was with Jugatsu. Code is unsure whether the bracelet is seperate of Jugatsu and still recovering, or if the bracelet merged with Jugatsu's essence, in which case it raises the question of whether Jugatsu has recovered as much as we though we had,"Kaiyen said.

"I didn't know,"Ryo commented.

"How far we really did come in understanding the AIs?"Kaiyen asked standing up.

"I thought we were still basically clueless as to the working of the AIs, but I had no clue we understood that much."

"It's nothing to be proud of though. Being trained under Code and in the various stages before becoming his apprentice, I've learned Code doesn't consider anything a success unless it's 100. Should any of that 100 be missing he considers it as being deprived, and one thing Code can't stand is being deprived of something he seeks. It rubs off as you stay around him,"Kaiyen said, returning to his normal self.

"You really admire him don't you?"Sakura asked.

"Ryo asked me that once,"Kaiyen said,"I said yes."

There was silence as Kaiyen left. Ryo felt like he had made a fool of himself, and could feel the pain of the sense that Kaiyen knocked into him.

"Satisfied?Sakura asked Ryo.

"Not really...but the information Kaiyen mentioned, about teleporting and about the bracelet just gives me something else to worry about,"Ryo replied, turning forward in the couch again.

"I wonder what everyone else is doing...Cuoka and Gyuni are dating, now,"Ryo said casually.

"Huh, since when?"Sakura asked, curious.

Ryo was relieved the topic switch worked so well. "Around the times of the negotiations."

"At first she couldn't stand being with him, it's actually kind of surprising,"Sakura commented.

Ryo decided it was time for a change of pace anyways, since they had been making some progress after all, he was feeling a bit better, but even casual conversation about how much they've changed since the beginning wouldn't make him feel any better about how he made himself look to Kiayen just then.

"I wonder what happened to our neighborhood, we haven't been there in a month,"Ryo said, looking up at the ceiling once again in thought.

"I bet Code will let us go back for a few days, it'll seem wierd anyways if we always have to stay in this 'school',"Sakura replied, mentioning the guise they used to get to this place.

----------

Ryo was actually somewhat surprised Code let them go out. He mentioned something about it being about time and ordered Kaiyen to drive them back.

"Alright, I'll leave the various school information up to you guys. The only things I want you two to say, should the questions arise are:The one I expect to be asked almost immediantly is, 'How long will you be staying?' in which case you reply, 'Not sure, they'll send someone to pick us up, when they want us back.' We probably won't pick you up until we start moving again, anyways. And something along the lines of, 'Why are you out of school?' you reply saying, 'They let students return home for at the start of every other month depending on how hard the student worked.' Any questions other than that, just make up your own answer. If you can't, I have enough faith in the two of you to somehow change the topic,"Code said as they pulled up to Sakura's house.

"I'll meet up with you shortly, probably after dinner I'll be allowed to leave,"Sakura said, giving Ryo a hug and leaving.

The door closed and they started towards Ryo's house.

"Actually,"Code began as they car began picking up speed,"I'm young enough, I could pass a student. I should meet your parents, it should prove to be interesting.

Ryo went wide-eyed.

"You're joking, right?"Ryo said.

"Why would I be? We work together yet no little about eachother,"Code replied casually.

A sweatdrop fell down Ryo's head.

"I know even less about you than you know of me and you're trying to say that?"Ryo asked, not really expecting an answer.

"While I'm gone, then Kaiyen, I'm leaving the work to you,"Code said, ignoring Ryo's question.

"Err, right, will do,"Kaiyen replied, clearing his throat and pulling up to Ryo's house.

"I'll come up with any answers revolving around us or myself of course. If your mother asks you anything about me, and I'm not around to answer, just say you think it's kind of rude to ask about someone without asking the person. That should be simple enough to get away with,"Code said, nodding.

"What'll I call you, I can't go around calling you Code inside my house,"Ryo said.

The car was already parked on the road in front of Ryo's house.

"Yeah, I've been trying to think of a decent fake name,"Code replied.

"What about Jugatsu's player's name?"Ryo replied quickly.

"Kaishin...,"Code paused, trying to recall the last name.

Ryo noticed his mother walking out to the car.

"We gotta get out, now,"Ryo said, jumping out.

His mother was surprised as she saw Ryo getting out.

"What are you doing here?"she asked, her face going from curious to pleased.

"The school institute thing is letting return home for awhile,"Ryo replied.

"How long are you going to be staying?"his mother asked, again, not noticing as Code left they car and was walking around it.

"It's umm,"Ryo paused.

"I figured you would forget, it varies between each student depending on how much effort they put in,"Code said, stepping next to Ryo.

"Whose your friend?"his mom asked.

"Before I answer that, I have something I want to ask you, Mrs. Kuinichi,"Code began, politely, acting very well. It was almost as if Code was actually a normal teenager. His usual serious attitude, and aura were completely different now."I was supposed to go home, but because my mother is always gone...she travels, and because my dad recently suffered and injury and is in the hospital they suggested I find someone else to stay with. If it isn't too much trouble, my I stay with you?"

"I don't see why not, if Ryo doesn't mind sharing his room,"Ryo's mother replied, probably pleased to have Ryo back after so long.

* * *

Aight, for those who didn't read my profile page, I'm at a point in AIC, where your input is vital. If there was ever a time to review, it is now. There are two options as of now. One ending AIC shortly after this break is over, meaning however I decide to end it, it happens after the break, or if you people decide you want a lengthy story I can make AIC last a bit longer, but it's already hit chapter 34, so it's kind of long as it is. Anyways, review and place your vote, soon to end, or drag it out longer, you decide.(Depending on how many people vote it'll automatically be a short ending most likely)

Storyline of short will probably be something like  
Break- lead into finale- finale- closing chapters  
A dragged out version will probably something like  
Break- Return to work- Probably research and filler chapters(Yay filler chapters)- Lead into finale- finale- closing chapters.


	34. Chapter 34:Ryo at Home

Well, for better or not, the plot is on hold for the next few chapters during this break. I originally planned on releasing this chapter a bit earlier. I'm disappointed I had no reviews, but ah well. Complaining never gets anything done. The next chapter has been finished, so I can post 35 whenever I get a chance (of course I'll probably wait a week or two, per usual). I suppose on the plus side to having no readers voice their opinion is that I can decide for myself, and take the short route(this thing needs end sooner than later, I've been wanting to work on other things lately). Other than that, nothing really comes to mind, so I guess enjoy the plotlessness.

* * *

"You never did tell me your friend's name, Ryo,"his mother said as Kaiyen pulled away,"and didn't you bring anything?"

"Well, I should still have clothes here, and if worst comes to worst he'll fit in my clothes, other than that I didn't really need anything,"Ryo replied.

"And my name is Kaishin,"Code responded, as the three walked inside.

"What's your last name?"Ryo's mother asked.

"Kaishin Someth-,"Ryo started to say, before being interrupted by Code.

"Ryo always pronounces it wrong, it's Some-eth. Kaishin Someth,"Code responded, still unable to remember the last name.

"Well come on in,"Ryo's mother said as they stepped inside.

"It feels so small,"Ryo commented, walking into his house for the first time in a month.

"I was about to go out shopping, so make yourselves at home, I'll be back with stuff for dinner,"Ryo's mother commented, taking Hiro and walking out.

"So that's your little brother,"Code commented as Hiro walked past them with his mother.

"Ryo!"Hiro shouted, waving as he left.

"Bye,"Ryo responded, closing the door.

"Well, I have faith in Kaiyen, and if anything this can be treated as a test. I have to say this AI incident is easily one of the toughest cases I've worked on,"Code replied, stretching,"So where's your room?"

"It was unexpected, you suddenly taking a break like that,"Ryo said, walking up the stairs, leading Code to his room.

The staircase felt so much smaller than it used to. Actually, the stairs altogether felt weird after using an elevator. Ryo was somewhat surprised at how quickly he adjusted to the place he lived at with Code, and how quickly he forgot how it felt to live in his own house. He walked inside his room for the first in awhile.

He could tell his mother kept the room somewhat clean. For the most part, everything seemed untouched aside from dusting. He looked around his room, reaquainting himself with it. Unlike in the 'institute', his room had the two different hight levels. His bed, dresser, closet, and entertainment system that held his radio were on the lower level, and the other side of the room was about a foot higher, and it held his set of swords, computer, and study desk which sat in front of the window.

"Not as good as what you provided, Code, but I still kinda missed it,"Ryo said, laying on his bed.

He glanced over at his nightstand which held his alarm clock.

"Glad to see you liked the room I gave you. And, you have to remember to call me Kaishin as long as we're here. Even if we're alone like now, it'll help. You never know if someone might be listening,"Code explained.

"Oh yeah, now that I think about it, you are considered a famous hacker. I kind of forgot,"Ryo replied, staring at his old white ceiling, feeling nostalgic.

"If you have swords in your room, how come you were barely able to qualify as average when we evaluated you?"Code asked, sitting at the chair by the study desk.

"Oh, those were really just for looks,"Ryo replied, lazily.

"Where will I be sleeping tonight, by the way?"Code asked.

"Oh, if you go downstairs, and go left, you see the living room. To the right is the kitchen, but if you walk around to the right of the stairs and go down the hallway, past the bathroom, there's a small guest bedroom on the left side of the hallway, I guess you can sleep there, or if my parents don't mind, the living room couch,"Ryo answered sitting up.

"Is there bedroom the room connected to the living room?"Code asked, since he noticed a door on the other side of the living room when he walked in.

"Well, that leads to the rest of the house. Back there is another hallway that leads to the master bedroom and my little brother's room,"Ryo explained."And by the way, that was some pretty good acting with my mother,"Ryo commented.

"Thanks, acting isn't really one of my strong suits since, as you've noticed I usually don't need to that often,"Code replied.

"It was almost beyond acting. If I didn't know any better, I would've thought you were normal kid back there. Even your aura seemed different."

Before Code could say anything, Ryo's cellphone started to ring. He answered it, finding Sakura on the other line.

"Ryo, have you eaten dinner yet?"she asked.

"My mother left a short while ago to pick up the stuff for dinner, so not yet,"Ryo answered.

"Perfect, I'm coming over to eat,"Sakura replied, hanging up before Ryo could say anything further.

"Figures,"Ryo commented, closing his phone and laying back down.

"What happened?"Code asked, going back to his 'normal kid' mode.

"Sakura decided to come over for dinner,"Ryo replied."What time is it?"

"About 6:40,"Code answered, walking over to the computer.

"I suppose by the time we finished dinner, it'd be a bit late to go touring for old time's sake. We have to do it all day tomorrow,"Ryo said while nodding.

"Sounds good,"Code said with an interested tone.

Ryo's mother returned shortly, with enough stuff to make several dinners, instead of just todays. Even with Sakura added to the guest list, there was still too much food to eat. Dinner conversation led to catching up, which forced, Sakura, Ryo, and Code to come up with several fake stories, including Sakura's admittance to the school and when Ryo met 'Kaishin'. Sakura almost slipped up a few times prior to knowing the fake name Code was using. When Code had to create a history and provide information on his parents, Ryo became really curious. Being the same age as Ryo, he could tell Code didn't live with his parents, that is, if he had any, and as for his history, Ryo wondered if it was really a variation of his actual history, or if he was able to come up with it all on the spot. The dinner conversation did nothing to really help Ryo understand more about Code, it just made him more curious as to the trivial information about Code's past.

The meal had actually finished before the conversation ended, and at last, his mother let everyone go. Code had no problem with the guest room. Even though it was small, he only planned on sleeping in there anyways. Sakura, of course, spent the night, as if it wasn't something easy to foresee. Despite protest from Ryo, Sakura still ended up sleeping in the same bed, but this time she had brought her own clothes. And even though Ryo had accepted and admitted his feeling for Sakura, it was still too wierd for him to be sleeping with her in the same bed, with him wearing a rarely used set of pajamas and her in a giant t-shirt.

Ryo was the first of the three to awake, finding Sakura's arms wrapped around him, which he had no problem with until he turned finding her head half way on him, and one of her legs sprawled across both of his. _My mother would kill me if she saw this,_ Ryo thought as he tried to carefully get up without waking her. She remained asleep long enough for Ryo to grab a new set of clothes, go to the bathroom to shower, and return to his room. He threw the pajamas in the corner of his room where he used to have a laundry bin, but since he left it was probably being used for other purposes. He decided to get on his computer for awhile, until Sakura woke up anyways. After starting up the computer, he turned to his monitor, finding his Skyld plushie, were he had left it when he joined Code.

"You were waiting here this whole time, weren't ya, buddy,"Ryo said to the plushie.

Ryo turned to Sakura, wondering what she had done with the Coinchii plushie. After looking through his computer, he found little interesting and decided it would be best to stay off "The World" so as not to get into it and waste the day. He walked downstairs, since he figured he would have to make his own breakfast anyways, he could start on it now. He was surprised when his mother gave him a good morning accompanied with homemade pancakes, sausage, and eggs. Code was already awake, enjoying his meal. Code told Ryo that he had given Kaiyen call and that he would be getting some clothes soon, so not to worry about letting him borrow any.

Before leaving, Ryo's mother made sure he knew where Sakura's breakfast was, and afterwards she was off to drop Hiro off at daycare and then to work. Kaiyen arrived shortly after Ryo's mother left, and brought some clothes for Code to wear while at Ryo's. Refusing to stop and eat, Kaiyen commented on how much work Code normally has, and how he had to get back to the base. Sakura finally woke up after Code went to take a shower, which was good for Ryo. Code would've probably made some comment about Ryo's reaction when he saw Sakura wander downstairs in nothing but a large t-shit and in a half-asleep state. Ryo managed to convince Sakura to change before coming back down quickly, so she would be able to avoid Code. After Code got out of the shower Sakura took hers, after eating.

After the morning's events had finished, the three were ready to go out and see revisit the places they used to go to all the time. However, two of the three now wore clothes different than usual. Code's outfit consisted of large, baggy black pants and a plain white t-shirt beneath a black unbuttoned cargo vest. Sakura's blue christmas-like dress was replaced with something similar to her japanese school outfit, but only it was a darker brown color and the skirt was longer than on the other outfit.

"So first we should probably stop at Dylan's and Suichi's houses. It'd be kind of odd to go inside, but at least we could show Co-...Kaishin, where they live,"Ryo said, correcting his slip-up.

"Then afterwards, we can stop by the park,"Sakura replied.

Code just followed, taking in the sites while Sakura and Ryo enjoyed revisiting the familiar places that had lost their once overly familiar touch. It was the kind of feeling they had when they were in someone else's house, but a house they often visited. The stops at Dylan's and Suichi's houses were short, since they didn't feel like stopping by, with the state Suichi and Dylan were in. They added the hospital to their stopping list, with the slight problem of transportation.

"The hospital is too far away to walk to,"Ryo stated, as they started heading for the park.

"Kiane lives too far away to walk to as well,"Code stated, knowing from early research where everyone lived.

"Yeah, he could give us a ride if we could actually get to him,"Sakura added, holding Ryo's hand as she had been since they left.

"Well after, the park, we have the library, then we have the rest of the day to wander wherever,"Ryo replied, realizing there wasn't actually all that many places they wanted to visit after all.

"We could visit your school,"Code suggested, turning down the road that led to the park.

"Today's Monday though, isn't it?"Ryo replied.

"Yeah, I don't think we can visit school while it's in session, since we're still supposed to be in school,"Sakura followed.

"When I said you were going to an institute, and that I'd take care of your grades, I meant it. The grades still come from this school, technically. We send the work to the school and they record your grade. And since we use the institute guise all the time, we can even get away with tricking real schools. I'm legendary for a reason, y'know,"Code stated.

"Well then, sure, if we're lucky it'll be lunch time and so long as we have money we should be able to buy a school lunch,"Ryo stated.

"Nonsense, we can borrow the culinary classroom and I can make us a lunch,"Sakura said, nodding.

"Well, either way it's still too early. So you two going to explain why this park is worth visiting?"Code replied, interested in the history.

"Lot's of things, there was the time I met Kiane, when I was forced on a date with Sakura before I finally accepted the way I felt about her, t-"

"You sounded so cute saying that,"Sakura interupted, nuzzling the side of Ryo's face, making him blush.

"Right, aside from the date, this had basically been the meeting spot of me, Suichi, and Dylan for a long time, plus we used to play here a lot when we were younger,"Ryo finished.

"Any spots in particular, worth pointing out?"Code asked, as the three began walking around.

"Well over there is where Kiane fell on me, pretending I was a monster. That was how I met him,"Ryo said, pointing to a large tree off in the distance.

"Oh, there's the ice cream stand,"Sakura pointed out.

"Ice cream stand?"Code asked, expecting some sort of story.

"Yeah, the ice cream stand has been in this park longer than we can remember. The people who run it change, but after all the years it's basically become part of the landscape of the park,"Ryo explained.

"It's still a bit too cold for ice cream. It's the beginning of February after all,"Code said, when Ryo pulled out his wallet.

"How about you, Sakura?"Ryo asked, before looking through it.

"Normally I'd accept anything from you, but it is still a bit on the cold side,"Sakura agreed.

Ryo found it ironic she would mention the cold while wearing a skirt, but didn't bother voicing it.

"Then there's the library Sakura and I visited on our date, but nothing in there really has anything worth seeing,"Ryo said.

"Alright, then let's do this,"Code began,"Since it won't be lunch time for another hour, we can go further into the city, and check the bus routes, after finding a route that goes by Kiane's house, we can head back for the school, by that time it should be lunch, we can eat, then report to the bus stop that has a bus going towards Kiane's house. From there we can visit him and head towards the hospital afterwards to check in on Suichi and Dylan,"Code suggested.

"Even though we live in the area of the suburbs that stretches into the city, it'll be a decent length walk,"Ryo replied.

"You walked all the way to the Demion Hotel from here, and that's a good ways into the city,"Code countered.

"Besides, until recently you were training with the Bakuku guy, so if anything you're more fit now,"Sakura added.

"Sensei Byaku, Sakura. I suppose so, let's stop off by my house first, and check a map so we know where to go,"Ryo said, giving in.

The trip to Ryo's house was short and luckily the bus routes were on the map, saving them a trip to the city. With Code's plan now nullified, it left the three with extra time still. A good idea to kill time popped into Ryo's mind as the three sat down in the living room.

"Remember the excuse you made to join us on our break?"Ryo asked Code.

"Yeah, that we don't know enough about eachother despite the fact we work together,"Code responded.

"More like we work for you,"Sakura added.

"Why don't you tell us about yourself then, all the stories you made up last night at dinner got me curious,"Ryo said.

"Yeah, how much of that was real and how much was fake?"Sakura asked.

"All of it was fake. If you're really curious, go ahead an ask me some questions,"Code replied, casually as if his history was no big deal.

"I have a question that's been bugging me for awhile,"Sakura quickly said, preventing Ryo from asking a question.

"That question is?"

"How the hell are you in charge of so many people? I can't see so many people working under a 15 year old just because you say you're Code,"Sakura stated bluntly.

"Oh, it was kind of set up for me, I just walked into it. I suppose it actually started before I was known as Code. Even though I was a kid I managed to impress a bunch of people in this one computer class I was taking outside of school. Before I knew it the people began to look up to me,"Code replied, making a possibly long story end short and unsatisfying.

"You aren't going into any more detail?"Ryo asked, actually expecting this sort of thing from Code.

Code sighed and began. "Alright then. When I say school, it isn't the same kind of school you two go to. I went to a place school where the sole focus was in teaching me. However, like school, I wasn't there all the time. I was quite young, probably six or so if I remember correctly. There was this computer shop by my school. At night the owner of the shop held computer lessons for people who wanted to learn how to use a computer to people who wanted advanced knowledge. It wasn't an official class so it's not like a person would get any degrees, but the owner was advanced enough to teach those kind of things.

"One day I stopped by the class in order to see what kind of things they did. Most of the people were older aged people, I was the only kid in there and since I was six or so they figured I was just at the age where I could understand how to use basic things on a computer. I 'advanced rapidly' as they put it, but for the most part I already knew how to do a lot of things on the computer.

"Probably after a few months of observing everyone and 'amazing' them with my 'progress' they finally decided to teach me more advanced things. For me it was easy to learn so I continued to advance at the same rate as when I knew what I was doing anyways. When they first began teaching me how to create a direct connection between a computer and the information in a program, or basic hacking, it didn't seem that appealing at first, but I grew to realize how much I could accomplish. Before they decided to even teach me how to create programs, I had already made some pretty advanced programs just by taking what I had seen from the hacked programs.

"I was applying the knowledge from previous lessons and adding my own twists in order to do things beyond what they were teaching and I'd say, perhaps about half a year after started going to the classes I had passed most of the owner's advanced students. Despite being a six year old, half of the adults in the area had already began asking me for help in various things. And sooner or later as everyone predicted I actually surpassed the owner. It took me less than a year to surpass someone who was working with computers and teaching people about computers for over 50 years. This astounded people and even after I left the class some of the adults followed me in order to further learn about computers.

"It wasn't until I was...eight, when I became known as Code, and in a year or so in time I became world renowned due to the projects I would take on. And in this time I began using my actual name less and less, and starting use Code as my name. And people gradually became drawn to me. At first it wasn't anything serious, but some of the people who came to me were quite influencial and powerful. These kind of people would be humiliated by the fact a child was teaching them so various places and funds soon flowed in in order to allow me to teach in private, and resulted in me just becoming a more and more reclusive person from the public as my agenda grew."

"And before you were six, what did you do?"Ryo asked.

"Before I was six, I suppose I was for the most part, just an incredibly intelligent child,"Code answered.

"What's your real name anyways, you used until you were nine, surely you remember it, or in the least some others should know it,"Sakura responded.

"That's staying secret, the name of Code will only be given to those who I deeply respect or to those who knew me before my renaming and helped me obtain my status,"Code answered.

"That's no fair,"Sakura argued.

"Well, actually, Code is the kind of person where the mysteriousness doesn't bother me too much. I mean I've been, curious at times, but Code is Code in the long run, that's all I need to know,"Ryo said, nodding.

"Those can't be the only questions, can they?"Code stated, to continue the time-killing discussion.

"Very well, then what about your parents? You said your mother travels and your dad was in the hospital yesterday when we first got here, then at dinner you said your mother was a flight attendant for country-to-country flights while your father was just an employee in a business not worth mentioning. Those two are obvious lies, even I could tell that much. What's the truth about them?"Ryo asked.

"Well, my parents worked at the school I was telling you about. I'm really not allowed to say much about it, because the school itself isn't supposed to be publicly known, nor can just anyone be in the school. Also it's a little...illegal shall we say in some aspects. That's all I plan on saying about the school,"Code answered, his face was serious, sending out vibes to let Ryo and Sakura know not to push the subject further.

"Kay then, how about how your current structure came to be? Like how do the data, eclipse, and orion phases work? Plus you said only have five apprentices, four others before Kaiyen became one. And also after you finish explaining that, what about the other four apprentices?"Sakura asked.

"Well with the people coming to me, not all of them were as capable. At first I would carry my projects and teaching seperately. As more people came to me seeking to learn, it soon became confusing trying to remember who was at what level. Even I get confused when I have 73 people at completely different levels of ability and I'm trying remember which person knows what off the top of my head. To fix this I created those phases. I decided to do something creative with the names though, which is where I used my name. C-O-D-E, C for Code, being me, O for the orion phase, D for the data phase, and E for the eclipse phase. You're already familiar with the phases and why they have their names so I can skip that part.

"Continuing with my story though. Even after I finished implementing the phases, it was still pretty scattered and there were only a few who were particularly talented enough to focus on teaching. Around this point I was also finding my projects as tedious due to all the small work that would interupt the major picture. I decided to, as they say, kill two birds with one stone and combined the phases with my projects. Each phase would due something related to my project if possible, if not, they would have a set of plans for their studies to follow on their own. I didn't even have apprentices until the problem arose when a person completed all three phases. When that happened, I just decided to teach the student on even more advanced subjects.

"Unfortunatly, few people managed to pass the phases by themselves and I did enjoy teaching the one person who did. So to give people drive, I created the five apprentice slots and the best people in the phases would be chosen as my apprentices. At first, I wasn't really prepared though, so apprentices were just given projects to do that I didn't think much of myself and I aided them a bit. But eventually the phases grew in skill and were able to do projects alone. So to switch it up, I decided to add some leadership experience and whenever I would choose an apprentice, I'd let them take leadership of some of the phases. It sort of molded itself into what it is now."

"So your funding for all of this was from people you were teaching?"Ryo asked, in response to an earlier answer.

"Yeah, I had a bit of funding from my parents at first, but that was only for a short while before I started getting people who would fund me in order to learn. To tell the truth, I have so many sources of money by now, I've probably surpassed Kiani's family in terms of money."

"What are your parents doing now? I never hear anything about them,"Sakura asked.

"Not sure, shortly after becoming Code and becoming able to live on my own they basically vanished. I just don't bother with them. If it was really such a big deal I'm sure that I'd recieve contact, or if I wanted I could find them, but I don't bother with what matters little. I didn't see them much as a child anyways."

"Tha-"Sakura began only to be cut-off.

"Anyways, it's about time, we can head to Ryo's school now,"Code said, standing up.

Ryo and Sakura looked at eachother then followed Code as he walked out.

It felt wierd to Ryo, returning to his old school. It wasn't all that long ago, but the school felt different anyways. Despite what Code said, Ryo was still surprised when they were allowed in as visitors. The culinary teacher didn't allow Sakura to cook anything, but they settled with a cafeteria lunch which was quickly eaten. With lunch out of the way, the three made their way into the city. The wait for the bus was short, but minor conversation and reminising passed the time quickly enough. They stepped off the bus and walked the rest of the way to Kiane's house.

"Hello?"Ryo said, as he pressed the button.

"Who is it?"Jenning's voice called over the speaker.

"It's Ryo, Sakura, and Co-Kaiyen, a friend of mine,"Ryo stated.

"Very well, I'll be right down, Master Ryo,"Jenning's replied.

"Master Ryo, eh?"Code commented.

"Nice ring to it, right?"Ryo joked.

"His dad's kind of crazy, be careful if you run into him,"Sakura warned, glancing casually at Ryo who shuttered at the mention of Mr. Sumabi.

"I'll keep that in mind,"Code responded.

The gate began opening suddenly as what looked like the cross between a golf cart and a car apparoached. The three sat inside and Jennings turned around heading back to the mansion.

"It's been awhile since you've last visited. Master Kiane was actually saying recently how he's been bored without you. It seems you've become like an older brother to him,"Jennings said, during the trip back.

"Really?"Ryo responded, surprised.

"You can ask him yourself. He said he would wait at the front entrance whe he heard it was you, Master Ryo,"Jennings stated.

Ryo glanced towards the door and saw Kiane standing in front of it.

"I don't know what to say,"Ryo replied, scratching the back of his head.

"Well, this is where you get off,"Jennings said, pulling up around the fountain.

The three stepped out of the golf cart-like vehicle. After greetings were exchanged, the four headed up to Kiane's room.

"So what've you been up to the last three months?"Ryo asked, once everyone took a seat at the balcony table.

"Well at first I forgot about that Code guy's offer so I didn't realize at first, but then I figured out you went to do that thing,"Kiane explained, using really vague terms.

"Yeah, we've been at an institute,"Ryo replied, waving his hand towards Sakura.

"After that I just continued playing "The World" with my old friends more often. It's been boring, really,"Kiane finished.

"Have you heard what happened to Dylan and Suichi?"Code asked.

"Who are you, anyways?"Kiane asked, not recognizing Code obviously.

"Kaishin Someth,"Code replied.

"Right...And what happened to Dylan and Suichi?"Kiane asked.

"Well it's one of the reasons we came over here, even though they didn't join Code like Ryo and myself, they still helped, and then they got injured. They're in the hospital now,"Sakura answered.

Kiane's eyes widened.

"Do you think you can have Jennings give us a ride?"Ryo asked.

"Of course,"Kiane replied, pulling out a walkie-talkie. "Jennings, we want to go to the hospital."

The four returned to the front to find Jennings waiting in the limo. They stepped inside and were off. Kiane's attitude seemed gloom after hearing the news, but the others were over the initial shock and conversed. At last they arrived at the hospital.

"We came to visit Suichi Mohi and Dylan Demion,"Ryo said to the lady at the front desk.

"Names?"the lady replied, not turning away from her computer.

"Ryo Kuinichi, Kaishin Someth, Sakura Ominari, and Kiane Sumabi,"Ryo answered.

The lady jumped up and looked at Kiane at the mention of his name.

"Oh, Kiane, forgive me for keeping you, please go ahead with your friends,"the lady stated, bowing.

"What was that all about?"Sakura asked as they walked to a map.

"My father basically owns the hospital,"Kiane replied.

Ryo was looking at the two strips of paper the lady handed him.

"Second floor, room 243 is where Dylan is, Suichi is up on the fourth floor,"Ryo stated, as they got into the elevator.

The elevator door opened on the second floor and the four proceeded to look for 243, there was a notice on the door saying no one was allowed so the four stopped, unsure of if they could go in or not. A doctor walked by so they decided to ask.

"Hey, are we allowed to visit our friend?"Kiane asked the doctor.

The doctor glanced at the notice then looked back at the kids.

"Well the notice says your not allowed, but I guess if you're close friends I can supervise your visit,"the doctor replied.

"Good job, Kiane,"Sakura said in response.

"Kiane? Sumabi?"The doctor responded to the name.

"Yeah?"Kiane asked.

"Forgive me, I didn't recognize you. Take all the time you want, you don't need me to watch over you,"the doctor responded hastily before running off.

"Wow, your influence is impressive,"Code admitted as he watched the doctor run around a corner and disappear from sight.

The four walked in and saw Dylan who for the most part looked fine. He was attached to several machines and was still sleeping.

"If it's anything like my injuries then it'll say something about tissues or muscles or something be burned even though there won't visible damage outside of the body,"Ryo said.

"According to the doctor reports we take, he's woken up twice, but both instances were only a minute or two long, it means he should be fine though,"Code commented.

"Reports you take?"Kiane asked.

"I've been keeping track of his progress,"Code answered.

Ryo couldn't figure out why Code was keeping his identity a secret even though Kiane already saw him once.

"Well as long as he's going to recover, then everything's okay,"Ryo said, feeling relieved. "Let's go visit Suichi."

The others agreed and the four went to the fourth floor. One doctor questioned what the four of them were doing, but when Kiane's name came up the doctor apologized and even offered to help. Apparently, the fourth floor was for intensive care and advanced operations. They weren't allowed to see Suichi directly, but they were brought into the room next to his and were able to see him through a fake wall that, from their side, looked like a glass window. Suichi was in what looked like a large mechanical heart leaving only his head exposed.

"This is some of the most advanced medical machinery available. You know the normal machines people are hooked up to?"the doctor asked them.

"Yeah,"Kiane responded.

"This machine does all of that whithout physical contact beyond the bed he's laying in right now. Also, it's slowly recovering his injuries through modified air waves. We have complete control over everything in that room, from lighting to temperature to air density. If it wasn't for this machine, the boy probably wouldn't have recovered for a much longer time. With this he'll probably recover around a month."

"Without this machine, how long would it take?"Ryo asked.

"It's hard to tell. If he survived he would probably never recover completely, but thanks to this machine, it's possible for him to make that complete recovery. It's all thanks to the Sumabi family's funding that we were able to get such a set up,"the doctor replied, bowing to Kiani.

"I'll make sure to tell my dad, he'll be happy to know the funding is going to good things,"Kiane said.

"Thank you, Kiane,"the doctor said, bowing again.

_The Sumabi family never ceases to amaze me. _Ryo thought, seeing a full grown man bowing to a six year old.

"And do you happen to know when Dylan Demion will recover?"Kiane asked.

"Sorry, but he's not under my care, you'd have to ask someone who is. Or if you can give me a rough idea of his injury, I can estimate,"the doctor responded, eager to help someone from the Sumabi family.

"He came with injuries similar to Suichi and at the same time,"Code said.

"Oh, that kid. He'll probably recover around the same time as Suichi,"the doctor answered.

"That's good then,"Kiane replied. "What are you guys doing after this?"Kiane asked, turning to the others.

"I don't know, we didn't really plan anything after this,"Ryo answered.

"Then I'll take you guys out for dinner,"Kiane replied, smiling.

The three saw no reason not accept, so with phone calls home to notify their parents, they took up his offer.

* * *

With that out of the the way, I probably will only have one or two more chapters after chapter 35 where it'll be during the break. After that we can get back into the plot, which I know myself, want to continue on. My proofreader went crazy from comma mistakes in this chapter, and really wasn't fond of chapter 35, but he was aggrevated at the time, so hopefully it isn't really that bad...But, that's for you to decide. He really isn't into the type of chapter, 35 is. Reviews and such always welcome, please keep reading and such...see ya next release. 


	35. Chapter 35:Memories

Alright, those, for those of you who don't read my profile. Ignore what I said in chapter 34's author notes. This is the last break chapter. The next one returns the story to the plot. If everything goes as planned the main plot of the story will end by chapter 39 or 40. There will be chapters following the plot, per my usual style of writing, so expect the story in total length to probably be about 42 or 43 chapters. I've become pretty busy in real life. It's basically at the point where I can't promise any release date, but expect the next chapter pretty soon as well considering it's done already. I'll wait awhile and post it as I did with this one. Enjoy.

* * *

Ryo yawned as he sat up. He wiped the water from his eyes and stood up. Looking around, he discovered something was off. It looked like he was in Mac Anu, only everything had inverted colors and he was still himself.

"What's going on?"he asked himself.

He felt a breeze of wind push itself through the buildings and felt a chill throughout his body, but when he went to cover himself up, his clothes magically appeared. With that odd sensation out of the way, he looked at his surroundings, trying to guess at his location within the town. After a bit of walking around, he gathered that he was somewhere further in the city than he usually went, due to the lack of familiar places. There was a system in "The World" for people who wanted to make a virtual home, but he never bothered giving it any of his attention. This might have been the area where players could enter their house though.

Without any idea what to do Ryo decided to pick one direction and keep walking. Eventually he would hit something if he wasn't going the right direction. Due to the inverted colors, he had to double check a few things to be sure of what they were. Seconds turned into minutes, which turned into hours as Ryo walked through town. His one direction plan wasn't proving to be of any use as he was still walking through unfamiliar places.

Just as he opened his mouth to complain, a door of light appeared in front of him. Unsure of what else to do, Ryo decided to step inside of it. When the door closed behind him, his surroundings appeared and he found himself in what looked like a typical dungeon. Three players emerged from a doorway. They sounded as if they were enjoying themselves, but before he could see them, it felt as if something sucked him up.

Ryo found himself now staring at the other two, one was AnakinseZ, but he couldn't tell who the other one was. Everything was mumbled and he couldn't make out what anyone was saying, but at that moment there was a bright light and whoever Ryo was turned to look at an AI that resembled Twilight, only she was entirely white. Ryo attempted to react, but still found himself unable to do anything.The AI floated closer to Ryo and there was a flash of light, the AI disappearing.

_What's going on? _ Ryo asked himself.

Suddenly Azara ran around a corner and stared at the three, but everything vanished and Ryo was in control of himself again. The players were gone when Ryo turned around in an attempt to see them.

"It couldn't be..."Ryo said to himself, with a theory in mind.

There was a creeking behind Ryo and a light began to shine. Ryo already knew it was another doorway and walked inside. He was in the color-inverted Mac Anu, but instead of being surrounded by buildings, he was on top of a building staring down at the town.

"Why did it put me up here? You can't get up here in game, can you?"Ryo asked himself, looking around and seeing no way down.

He paused figuring another door would show up, but when it didn't, he sat on the edge of the roof, staring down. He was above the Chaos Gate. The first thing he realized about the gate was that the security grid that covered it was gone. He looked upward and noticed the sky had no grid either. It was odd. Ryo already figured it wasn't the real Mac Anu, but why it was inverted, and why the security grid was missing, he couldn't figure out.

Also, what was the point of the image from that doorway? He still had his theory, but he didn't really have any basis for it beyond a guess. He laid back, letting his legs dangle off the edge of the building while thinking. It looked like a shadow ran by for a second, but Ryo shrugged it off, it was probably him blinking or something. He inhaled, taking a deep breath, and during the exhale another door appeared.

"It's about time,"Ryo said aloud, getting up and walking into it.

This time he found himself in a small room with a table, one window, and a door. There were sounds coming from the other side of the door, but before he could go to see what it was, he switched places again and found himself entering the room. After quickly looking around, he found himself glancing out of the window finding another AI. Unlike the other one this one was red, the same red that covered most of Twilight, but this AI looked nothing like Twilight. It was male and for the most part looked like a normal kid, albiet glowing, red, floating, and obviously evil. The AI turned towards the room and pointed at it, confusing Ryo at first, but when a ball of energy appeared in front of the hand, Ryo realized it was attacking.

_These must be the first two AIs. So then these are Jugatsu's memories? _Ryo thought to himself as he found himself backing away. He saw AnakinseZ and the other person from the dungeon. _If these are Jugatsu's memories and AnakinseZ is here, then the other person must be Skyld, but he looks completely different._ Ryo thought as the attack from the AI shattered the wall the window was at. The AI appeared in the opening of the destroyed wall and was laughing at the three. Ryo was unable to see more though, because his arm appeared in front of his face. He could make out a faint glow, but before anything else happened, everything vanished, leaving Ryo alone in the room.

Ryo stood up and checked his arm. Jugatsu had a bracelet and Ryo figured that was what happened. Jugatsu used his bracelet. Ryo stepped over to the broken wall. The distance down was probably similar to the hieght of the Chaos Gate and the roof he was just on.

"So it's obvious what's going on, but why is it happening?"Ryo asked himself, staring out of the hole in the wall. "Is this Jugatsu's will?"

As Ryo began to contemplate, another doorway appeared. With nothing else happening in that room, Ryo felt no need to stay there. So he stepped inside the next door. This time instead of appearing in Mac Anu, he appeared in an inverted-color Dun Lorieg. During the transfer, an image flashed in his head with the word freedom in front of Azara with her weapon drawn.

Ryo blinked for a second, then stumbled over as his balance kicked in from the transfer. The winds in Dun Lorieg were strong, he never realized it while being unable feel normal things in "The World". It made him shiver, even though he had on his hoody. He stepped over to a closed off space in order to get away from the wind, and sat down warming himself. The place he found was both good and bad. Good in the fact the wind wasn't reaching him, but bad in the fact the building was blocking the sun.

"What were their names again...It was something similar to Twilight,"Ryo said aloud to himself, trying to recall the names of the two AIs.

It didn't take him long to remember it was Dusk and Dawn, and from there he figured Dawn was the female AI and Dusk was the male AI. The names didn't take him long to remember and he wasn't sure when the next door would open, but with the wind it was too cold to try walking around. Ryo assured himself that the door would probably appear near him like it usually did anyways.

_If this is Jugatu's memories, then perhaps this is his will and he wants me to know about the previous encounters with the AIs. Code only knows the basics of what happened, enough to get the picture, but perhaps Jugatsu wants to let me know everything. _Ryo was thinking as the next door appeared on the building behind him. He stood up and walked through, an even worse cold biting at him. This area was a field covered in snow. Ryo could see a stage set up in front of what resembled a mountain. Ryo felt the same pulling sensation and now found himself on the stage staring at Azara and who Ryo guessed was her assistant, making him Remial.

Remial was fairly short, wearing large white pants and a white shirt. The shirt was hidden beneath his red trenchcoat for the most part, and his hair was like a shorter, poofier version of Ryo's.

Ryo turned around, or more like Jugatsu did, making Ryo as well. Behind him he saw the old Skyld, AnakinseZ, a person Ryo guessed was the pre-game administration Momiri, and pre-assistant Venus. But there was a last character who Ryo had no idea who it could be. The words being said still came out as mumbling and illegible to Ryo, so even if her name was said, it wouldn't matter. The cold was irritating Ryo horribly by this point, and Ryo could sense that Jugatsu was being bothered by it as well.

Azara picked her sword up and began charging towards Ryo. When close enough, her sword began dropping downwards. Ryo's hands were thrown forward suddenly and the sword smashed into invisible weapons, cancelling the attack, but do to the cold, Jugatsu was thrown back, pulling Ryo with him through the memory. The wooden stage was cold to the touch when Ryo landed, sending chills up his back. He could see Azara coming, but Jugatsu didn't try and get up. Azara was quick though, and Jugatsu must've realized he wouldn't have been able to get up in time, something Ryo would've tried to have done. When her next attack came down, Jugatsu instead rolled to the side, jumping up. It disoriented Ryo at first and the fast movement only enhanced the bitterness of the cold.

_Jugatsu moves so fast, but I get the feeling it's not just the fact he's a twinblade. He's usually a better fighter than I am, I've gathered that, but even this far back in time, he seems to have been better..._ Ryo realized as Jugatsu ran forward. Azara threw her sword an attempt to hit Jugatsu before he could respond. It proved to be effective as Jugatsu continued to head forward, sliding under the sword. At first Ryo thought Jugatsu cleared it, but he felt the sword make contact with his shoulder. Unable to scream out loud, he shouted as loud as possible in his mind in response to the pain. He could feel the cold entering the wound, making his arm go numb.

_How can he endure this!? _Ryo shouted, wanting to hold the wound and leave this cold. Instead Jugatsu just stood up, his left arm hanging down. It cost him a shoulder but Ryo realized when Jugatsu glanced back that he just wanted to get in between Azara and her sword. Jugatsu started forward, thrusting forward with his right arm, but Azara dodged it and jumped past Jugatsu, running to her sword. Ryo felt umbalanced and fell to the ground, struggling to get up. The pain was immense, Ryo wanted to lay down, anything to stop pulsations of pain, but Jugatsu struggled to get up, failing in the end, and meeting the floor of the stage with his body. Ryo was suddenly pulled into a side roll, as Jugatsu dodged Azara's attack by sensing it. Ryo was starting to lose his breath as Jugatsu forced himself up and began wildly slashing at Azara with only his right hand. His attacks were furious and quick though, forcing Azara to block and slowly pushing her back. The biggest surge of pain came to Ryo though, when Jugatsu forced his half-lifeless hand up in order to do a final attack with both of the daggers. He accomplished, knocking her down and knocking her weapon away, but the he exerted too much energy and dropped his weapons now.

Azara stood up, looking confused, and turned away from Jugatsu. She mumbled something and suddenly everything vanished. Ryo shouted out as he regained control. The pain faded with Jugatsu and the others, but he still had the memory of the pain and then there was the cold. He desperatly ran to the door when it appeared and relished parting with the horrible cold and wound he felt in that area.

He felt the warmth return to his body as he looked around. It seemed this time he was on the bridge to Mac Anu. There was a flash and suddenly Mac Anu had normal colors, but was completely destroyed, as if the AIs attacked. Mac Anu returned to normal after a few seconds and a doorway appeared. Ryo stepped through to find himself in a normal, non-color-inverted Mac Anu, this time without damage.

Before being able to do anything else, he felt himself getting sucked into Jugatu's position. He was hiding behind a small ledge next to the bridge watching Azara step back, and Remial walk up. They were fighting a monster that looked as if it was formed by the body of a large tree, with two equal sized arms. The monster however, had no head on it's shoulders. It was instead the 'hand' of one of the arms, the other arm had a sword for a hand.

The monster slashed at Remial who effortlessly ducked the first time, and then stepped back dodging the second attack. For the third attack, he caught the blade of the monster's sword-hand and pulled him closer where he followed up with another attack that consisted of jumping through the monster, breaking it in half. It disappeared shortly afterwards and Remial and Azara began talking.

Jugatsu began to emerge from his spot only to have Azara attack him again. She charged at Jugatsu, but Jugatsu countered, quickly bringing up his daggers to block the attack. However, Ryo saw his own body still, in place of Jugatsu's. Since he had no daggers at the time, it appeared more like Azara's sword froze in mid-air. Through Jugatsu, Ryo then pushed Azara's sword back with his invisible daggers. Jugatsu then attempted two more slashes, but both were skillfully blocked by Azara, who appeared to be quiet skilled in positioning her hands quickly. Admist all the battling, Azara's mouth continued to move, Ryo guessed the two were talking. Azara slashed downwards, Jugatsu easily blocking, but instead of pushing forward, Azara pulled her weapon back and attacked at a different angle. Between blocking and jumping backwards, Azara was beginning to get ground against Jugatsu, until Jugatsu locked her weapon inbetween his.

The two stood there for a moment, talking back and forth, Ryo was curious as to what they were talking about, but suddenly Ryo felt his hands open, dropping his daggers. Azara fell forward as Jugatsu ran forward, having Ryo pick up his invisible daggers again. Azara was quick though, and was already on her knees slashing sideways at Ryo who, through Jugatsu, dove over her and rolled forward, landing on his feet. Azara was already behind him and slashing downwards when he trurned around, but Ryo reacted quick enough and his daggers were up. It mattered by this point because the two were seperated by a strong gust of wind with a white light as the source.

The fighting ended and Ryo looked at Dawn who flew close to Ryo after muttering something. She grabbed Ryo's arm and looked at his wrist, or for Jugatsu, his bracelet. She looked disappointed but then moved her face close to Ryo's, causing Jugatsu to slip backward. Dawn responded by smiling then turned towards Azara who looked angry. Ryo was unable to make out what she was screaming, but she wasn't moving. When she finally did start charging forward a red light appeared, and in it Dusk arrived. He glanced around, becoming angry when he laid eyes on Dawn. Dawn started floating away, vanishing in white light, leaving the three players and Dusk in Mac Anu.

Dusk hovered lower to the ground and flew full speed towards Azara. He paused as he came within inches of her and pulled his hand back. It appeared to be in flames, but Ryo couldn't tell between it being some type of attack or whether it was just the angle of the light on Dusk. Either way when he launched his punch Azara managed to bring her sword up, attempting to block the attack, but it was a futile block. Her sword completely shattered beneath his blow, and she was forced back from the power. His feet touched the ground this time and charged towards Azara, uppercutting her before stopping this time and kicking her again while she was still in the air. Ryo stood up finally, still watching Dusk's movement. For some reason Jugatsu shook his head then watched as Dusk set his sights on Remial. Remial managed to block Dusk's punch, but he still flew from the force, landing on his back. Jugatsu finally began running forward, a golden light momentarily defined the daggers, but they were too long to be daggers. In Ryo's opinion, they were more like swords, even though twinblades didn't duel wield swords. There was also a soft golden light on his wrist, but it was only there while the golden light defined the weapons. Before Jugatsu could reach Dusk, he had already grabbed Remial by the collar and teleported in the air. Jugatsu threw his weapons back to his side and started running as Dusk dropped Remial. It was close but Jugatsu managed to catch Remial. He put him down and quickly withdrew his weapons.

Jugatsu shook his head and put the daggers away, leaving Ryo clueless as to why he didn't fight. Instead of doing anything further, Ryo found himself grabbing his right arm and staring at his wrist again. Nothing was happening. He turned towards Dusk who had already summoned energy in the palm of his hand. When a golden light suddenly appeared around Ryo's wrist, Dusk stopped his attack, his energy dispersed through out the area. Ryo raised his hand and all he saw was a flash of golden light before everything disappeared leaving him in Mac Anu. A door of light appeared near him shortly and he walked though. He was back in the color-inverted Mac Anu, this time by the Chaos Gate, and this time not alone.

"Jugatsu,"Ryo said, staring at a spiky, blonde haired character who was covered in a black cloak and standing in front of the Chaos Gate.

"Ryo, welcome to my mind. I've progressed quite a lot since I've started living in your body, thanks for allowing me to recover. In response, I decided to use my ability in order to help you understand what happened to the best of my ability. What you've been seeing is my memory and the reason you are the way you are, is because ,like you've been experiencing, I have all of my senses in "The World". When you are ready to experience the final fight, step through the Chaos Gate, but unlike the other memories, this will probably be the longest one. You're going to feel pain, and will probably be confused since I'm unable to recall the actual words said, but the main thing that matters is what happens."Jugatsu replied, before stepping to the side.

"So you're fine with me being in your mind?"Ryo asked, slowly walking up the stairs.

"I exist in yours, remember? It's nothing,"Jugatsu said, watching as Ryo stepped up to the Chaos Gate.

Ryo took a deep breath and a last look at Jugatsu, then stepped into the Chaos Gate which stopped moving to act as the door. He took a step inside and found himself in a grassy field. Windmills and rocks were sparse, but took position in various parts of the map. The grass was tall, coming up to Ryo's waist. As expected he felt himself once again being sucked into another area, taking up Jugatsu's position.

This time Dawn appeared within her white light and looked at Skyld and Venus who appeared to be fighting in the middle of a clearing. Her face was sullen and she floated downwards, a red light appearing from behind her, Dusk staring at her. Suddenly Jugatsu looked up and Ryo saw a green grid suddenly cover the sky.

"That's the same grid as in town, that means Remial created it?"Ryo tried to ask, Jugatsu looking over at Remial.

Suddenly Ryo spotted Skyld flying towards Dusk and slashing at him, but Dusk grabbed the end of Skyld's blade, which at this point Ryo recognized as one of the sword's Twilight wore on her back. Dusk appeared to be effortlessly holding Skyld up via his sword, then threw the sword which dragged Skyld with it. Skyld twisted his body around at the last minute and landed, feet first, on the side of the windmill. He bounced off the side and landed on the ground. Jugatsu then ducked down and headed for a large rock in the field. He knelt down behind the rock and observed at first. Venus leaped over a ball of energy that Dusk had shot at her, luckily for her because it wiped out the data behind her. Skyld went next, jumping up to attack again, but Dusk quickly flew behind Skyld and caught the back of vest midjump. Once in hand, he threw Skyld as hard as he could at the ground.

Jugatsu got up and charged ahead over the rock, jumping at the top of it. Both daggers came out and Jugatsu attempted two attacks at once, but Dusk managed to grab both of his wrists and threw him into a rock. A pain surged through-out Ryo's body, starting in his back which made contact with the rock. The pain wasn't as bad as the shoulder injury in the snow field, but Ryo was still impressed with how Jugatsu shrugged it off and pushed himself back up. Ryo saw Skyld and Venus jumping at Dusk from the rock, both next to each other ready to attack, but Dusk grabbed Venus's spear and threw her an amazing distance away. With her out of the way, Dusk quickly reacted and kicked Skyld in the face, sending him flying over the rock where he disappeared in the in the grass. The sword he was holding fell in front of Jugatsu, but Jugatsu wasn't moving. Suddenly the one girl who Ryo didn't recognized ran at Dusk, with Jugatsu reaching out towards her.

Ryo's wrists began glowing again and the daggers were once again outlined in a golden light. Dusk had landed by this point and was reaching for Skyld's sword, but Jugatsu quickly jumped up and slashed vertically with both swords going opposite directions. Dusk was quicker however and, jumped back into an ambush by AnakinseZ. It didn't work however, as Dusk blocked the attack with Skyld's sword. Jugatsu caught up and aided in attacking Dusk, but Dusk managed to keep blocking the three swords. Ryo was impressed by Dusk's speed and reaction time, even though he was an AI. AnakinseZ's attack speed was impresive as well, Ryo almost didn't notice it was the other sword Twilight carried. Despite the constant flurry of attacks raining down upon Dusk, he continued to block all of them, not even getting budged back. He suddenly started grinning as Skyld's sword began to glow, the two continued to attack though. After a certain point, Skyld's sword looked as if it was made of light at which point Dusk jumped backwards and slashed forward, a burst of strong wind exiting the blade, and tossing the two into the air. AnakinseZ landed for the most part unharmed, but Jugatsu was sent flying further, where he clipped a rock and began spiralling. Even after bouncing off of the ground several times and taking so much damage, Jugatsu wouldn't be stopped. Ryo felt as if it would be better to just lay down, but Jugatsu continued on. Jugatsu dropped one of his weapons and reached back pulling at something, Ryo couldn't tell, but then afterwards picked up his weapon again.

Dusk was now leering at AnakinseZ who was laying on the ground, visibly in pain. Whatever was happening, Jugatsu suddenly charged forward, slashing downwards with one of his weapons, but Dusk blocked it then blew Jugatsu back with another wind slash. Jugatsu managed to keep footing, but was still blown back. Ryo noticed Dusk taking AnakinseZ's weapon as well. Dusk then turned towards Jugatsu and began flying towards him, instead of bracing for the attack however, Jugatsu leaped forward slashing at Dusk who was unable to dodge and was knocked back.

Ryo noticed everyone else somehow vanished by this point, when Jugatsu looked at Dawn who appeared to say something. Whatever was said, Jugatsu charged towards Dusk, both swords at his side ready for a slash, both attacks were blocked by AnakinseZ's weapon. Dusk jumped back and unleashed two wind slashes from each weapon. Jugatsu dove to the side to avoid the first one and managed to perfectly roll back on his feet as if his dashing was never interupted, the second air blast was nullified when Jugatsu slashed through it, pausing momentarily before continueing to run.

_I don't know what happened, but he seems to be a completely different person now, _ Ryo thought, forgetting about the pain as he continued to follow Jugatsu's memory. Jugatsu managed to get back up to Dusk who blocked Jugatsu's first attack, but not the second attack, which hit his wrist and caused him to drop Skyld's sword. Before Dusk could pick it back up, Jugatsu managed to hit Dusk twice more. Dusk's body was now covered in various slashes. Dusk decided against close-range combat at this point as he floated back into the air and prepared an energy attack. A ball of red energy was shot at Jugatsu, but he put his swords up, shielding him from damage, but not the impact as he was still knocked back. Jugatsu managed to land on his feet and at that instant was running, crouched in the grass, away from Dusk's eyes who by this point was shooting randomly. Jugatsu got behind Dusk and leaped into the air to attack. It would've hit, but Dusk teleported even higher, causing Jugatsu's attack to miss. The light of the bracelet appeared on Ryo's wrist and he suddenly found himself teleporting above Dusk where Jugatsu managed to get in two attacks before falling. Ryo was impressed by the fact Jugatsu landed while taking little to no damage from the drop. Jugatsu then repeated his earlier tactic and continued to run under the cover of the grass. Dusk however flew yet even higher and, after putting AnakinseZ's sword away, put both hands together above his head. A large ball of energy slowly started materializing above him. Ryo was waiting for Dusk to launch it onto the field, but instead several beams of energy began shooting out of it in random directions. The beams seemed to last forever as Jugatsu slashed at any that came too close.

The explosions finally ended and the field was now devestated by the attack, random data holes and crators filled the area. Jugatsu wasn't waiting though, and Ryo found himself once again teleporting above Dusk, however Dusk wasn't fooled this time and teleported to AnakinseZ's sword, recovering it. Jugatsu landed again and began running to Dusk who thrusted both weapons into the ground and opened his mouth, a beam of energy the size of Twilight's came out. It was too large for Jugatsu to dodge so he slashed downwards against the beam, holding it back for a few seconds before getting blown away. The blast was strong enough to blow Jugatsu back a considerable distance, bouncing off of the ground. The pain returned to Ryo, it felt as if his body would give away at anytime, but Jugatsu was back on feet before Ryo realized it and running back at Dusk. Dusk attempted the attack once again, but like Dusk, Jugatsu learned from the first attack and teleported behind Dusk after the the beam of energy was released. Dusk was unable to get his swords out quick enough and Jugatsu thrust one of his swords through the back Dusk. The reddish glow fled from Dusk, in a shape that reminded Ryo of a bird.

The rest of Dusk was now uncovered, he looked like an average kid now, but his body was covered in various wounds. A few words were exchanged and Dusk quickly got up slashing with both swords, Jugatsu jumped back but wasn't quick enough and Ryo felt a pain surge through two gashes in Jugatsu's chest. Not even giving Jugatsu a chance to react, Dusk was in the air spinning at an incredible speed. The energy from the swords soon took shape and a large, red dragon created from energy was flying towards Jugatsu. Jugatsu reacted fast enough to get out of the way of this attack and slashed downwards without even looking, but managing to behead the dragon. Jugatsu leaped towards Dusk, but both swords of Jugatsu's were blocked by Dusk via AnakinseZ's sword. There was a quick flash of golden light and Jugatsu was now behind Dusk, giving him two large gashes in his back in addition to all of the other injuries. Dusk fell to the ground slowly, loosening the grips on his weapons. Without the energy to hold himself up, his body shortly dropped to the ground after he dropped the swords. Everything vanished at this point, and Ryo found himself alone in the destroyed area, without anymore injuries.

He was surprised when Jugatsu stepped in front of him.

"You went through so much,"Ryo said, kneeling on the ground because of the mental pain left behind from Jugatsu's injuries.

"In the middle of the battle I used the power of my bracelet to send my friends back into town,"Jugatsu said, his right hand now poking out of the cloak with a golden, blocky bracelet on his wrist."Afterwards, I battled and defeated Dusk, but he sent his essence out to possess Dawn. I had no choice but to drain their data. I have one more thing I want you to see. Can you endure the pain a little longer?"

Ryo nodded, unable to say anything. In response Jugatsu nodded, his face was void of emotion, but his voice was sullen. Jugatsu disappeared, leaving Ryo alone. Mere seconds afterwards he felt himself get sucked back into Jugatsu. The unbareable pain returned to him, making him want to scream out. Jugatsu pushed himself off the ground and Ryo saw three colors around his wrist. During all of Jugatsu's memories the light was only golden, but now it was golden, red, and white. His wrist rose straight up, pointing into the sky and his body began to lift. Ryo was astounded that Jugatsu's body finally reacted to all the pain as it fell limp after getting in the air.

"This..."Ryo heard Jugatsu say, suddenly.

_This is the first I've heard any voices. _Ryo thought.

"...is..."Jugatsu continued.

Ryo listend to the rest of what Jugatsu was saying.

"...it. Everyone...have fun,"Jugatsu finished.

Ryo felt his eyes beginning to water as he realized what was happening. This was the end of the last incident, the giant mystery that plagued half of the investigation. Ryo felt the pain vanish and found himself on the ground. He was staring upwards and saw Jugatsu's tattered body. Bandages hung off, his shirt was torn, the cloak was gone, he had several injuries and scuff marks covering his body. Tears began to flow from Ryo's eyes. Everything he went through, was hard to watch all at once. At the worst part was the fact it proved to be in vain. Jugatsu's body joined the light that was caused by the bracelet. It was as though a star was floating in the middle of a field. Beams of light soon shot from the bracelet as Jugatsu's body lost its shape and began to form the ball of light. The field, and everything in it was now slowly being consumed by the light. It was a sullen kind of beauty, like a rare and mystical find that would never be found again. The moment was short, but seemed to stretch out for Ryo. Everything seemed as if it was halted. The field was nothing but light, like the various beams of light that shot out from the star-like ball of energy. Ryo fell to his knees, tears creating a constant stream of water from his eyes.

He was astounded, but in a split second everything was gone. He dwelled in the nothingness for a few seconds before a door of light appeared. He barely had the energy to pick himself up and walk through, but as if Ryo's body reacted by itself, he managed to get through. Mac Anu surrounded him once again.

Jugatsu stared at Ryo for a short while, before finally speaking. "It's time for you to wake up and return your world, thanks for letting me share of my memories,"Jugatsu said before vanishing.

----------

He felt himself being shaken and he opened his eyes, which still had tears running down it. Sakura was looking at him worried, but Ryo was still shocked by what Jugatsu had to endure.

"Sakura,"Ryo said before his head dropped into her lap and began sobbing.

Sakura merely petted his head, not pushing him to say anything.

"I have...something...to share...when I finish,"Ryo said between sobs, hiding his face.

"It's okay,"Sakura replied gently.

Code was standing in the doorway, upon hearing the sobbing. It was past noon and Ryo was asleep which was odd so they decided to check on him, finding him in that state.

* * *

As I said last author's note, my proofreader wasn't really fond of this kind of chapter, but meh. It's the last plotless chapter I plan to have in the book. I've noticed that lately it seems I've been attracting readers. Last I checked, I had 1337 views on AIC which I found kind of amusing. And at the moment it ties with alerts/favorites as Purify. Oddly enough though for the most part the people who favorite/alert AIC with the exception of like two people are different than Purify's. But yeah, enough ranting, reviews and such welcome, AIC is almost done. 


	36. Chapter 36:Revival

Well a few days later than originally planned. Luckily everything returned to normal for me just in time because I'm going to be gone for roughly three days which would've meant three weeks between this chapter and the last. I suppose it's not really a big deal, but, whatever. With this chapter, I'm proud to say the plot will now be moving towards the end, which considering the story will be about 40 chapters long, it's about time. Enjoy.

* * *

"Ryo, we have to go,"Code said suddenly, waking Ryo up one morning.

Ryo opened his eyes and looked around, finding Code standing in the doorway.

"What happened?" Ryo asked, sitting up.

"I recieved a call from Kaiyen. It seems Twilight was spotted in a few fields."

"Since when?"Ryo asked, jumping out of bed.

Code closed his eyes and calmly turned around.

"I'll explain it on the way to Sakura's house. I really don't want to see you in your boxers,"Code said walking downstairs.

Ryo grabbed some clothes and headed downstairs.

"Make it quick,"Code ordered, as Ryo stepped around the base of the stairs.

Ryo rushed his shower, and was back out in a few minutes. Code was already waiting by the door when Ryo got out, so they wasted no time in getting in the car with Kaiyen.

"Suddenly, rumors started appearing on the BBS about an odd character. The description was similar to Twilight's, so we contacted some of the people posting the topics. Of course we used a fake character to contact them, but that's not important. From the looks of things Twilight has started attacking some of the players. From what we've gathered, the earliest spotting was late last night. Apparently Twilight has been busy. The rumors have already started spreading like wildfire and it seems that everyone is talking about it. We won't be able to keep this low key anymore, and we'll have to stop Twilight sooner than later,"Kaiyen explained to Ryo.

"The big difference between now and before, is that before, the rumors, for the most part, were ignored and few people bought into it, but Twilight's doing a number on every field she visits and it's impossible to cover up the evidence. People as a mass usually follow eachother blindly, and with people talking about the rumors so much, you know people are going to be idiots and actually chase after Twilight just to see her. It'll be like protecting a blind man feeling his way around a room full of sharp weapons without him knowing we're there,"Code stated in addition to Kaiyen's explanation.

"If I recall, you said before you wanted to make Twilight pay for all the trouble she's caused. It looks she'll have even more to answer for at this point,"Kaiyen said, parking in front of Sakura's house.

Code jumped out, heading towards Sakura's front door.

"If I remember correctly, the raid on the Deletion Zone took place like two weeks ago. Does that mean Twilight recovered just from that raid or do you think she's completely recovered?"Ryo asked.

"If these two weeks were spent just recovering just from the raid, then I'd feel relieved because her healing capabilities would be slow. I think in this case, it's probably niether of those situations. She's probably recovered enough to use her powers with little to no effect on herself anymore."

"Now that you mention it, didn't someone say something about Twilight saying that her powers used up a lot of her energy?"Ryo asked.

Before Kaiyen could respond, Code stepped inside the passenger seat. Sakura was getting in the back seat with Ryo at this point, and before they were even in, Code ordered Kaiyen to drive. As soon as the doors closed, Kaiyen took off, explaining the situation once more to Sakura. Kaiyen drove as fast as possible, while avoiding police. They soon reached the institute. The three got out of the vehicle at the front entrance and Kaiyen took the car to the garage.

"You changed back to your blue dress,"Ryo mentioned as they stepped inside the front doors.

"So does that mean Ryo's been checking out my body?"Sakura said, grabbing Ryo by the arm,"I decided to stay with this, because it's still kinda cold out."

"You two will report with me to the computer room. I'll see if we can get anymore back-up, but we need to at least stop Twilight from wandering around like this. I guess this was my mistake, just because she went into hiding I decided to take it easy,"Code said, his back at the two the whole time.

There was a silence after that order as the two just followed Code. Once in the computer room, Code once again ordered the two to their computers. Thanks to Kaiyen, everyone else was already in position for Code to take command. And although he didn't say it, Ryo could tell Code was grateful for the convinience of everything being set.

"I guess, he made a good choice, picking Kaiyen as his apprentice,"Ryo commented, logging into "The World" for the first time in awhile.

----------

Coinchii appeared in Mac Anu, shortly before Miryo.

"Stay there until I give you further orders,"Code replied to the two as soon as their golden rings disappeared.

"He seems kind of upset,"Miryo whispered to Coinchii.

"I don't know why, but he's blaming himself for this,"Coinchii responded.

The two sat their in silence, waiting for Code to say something.

"I can't be sure yet, but a new topic was just posted on the BBS about witnessing the 'Devil Girl'. He said his friend was killed in-game and when he didn't answer his phone in real life, the player quickly left. The area is Theta Flying Apple Merchant Hometown,"Code said quickly.

Miryo and Coinchii quickly formed a party and went to Theta via the Chaos Gate. Before their golden rings even vanished, they shouted the area keywords and vanished again. Once materializing they were greeted by a large explosion. The field was in horrible condition. Every few feet there was hole, revealing the data stream in an otherwise normal looking desert themed area. Shouts were heard following the explosion so the two ran to where it came from.

"Help!"a twinblade shouted franticly, running away from an incredibly pissed off looking Twilight.

"Twilight really is here, but why?"Coinchii asked, pulling his weapon out.

The twinblade spotted Coinchii and Miryo and turned suddenly to run towards them.

"Stop!"Coinchii shouted at the twinblade.

The twinblade however was too frightened to listen and ended up running straight into a data hole. He fell and not even a scream was heard as his player was suddenly shot back out. The character was physically torn into piece with the lines of data that made up his character slowly dissolving into the air. What remained of his character slowly began to dissolve as well

"Damned worthless players want to disturb my recovery,"Twilight shouted, watching the character dissolve into the air with an expression of pure fear pasted onto the player's face.

"Rai Don!"Miryo shouted.

A lightning bolt struck Twilight, but did little, if any, damage to her. Twilight slowly turned towards the two, surprised at their presence.

"Coinchii was it? I'll tear you to pieces and take Jugatsu from you. When I return to my former glory, you'll be the first person I kill,"Twilight said, a ball of white energy appearing in front of her.

"Dusk...No matter how you look at it, you're still Dusk. Do you really think you can beat Jugatsu? You looked pretty pitiful in that fight, you know,"Coinchii taunted.

"What do you know?"Twilight replied coldly, unleashing her beam across the field towards the two.

The two managed to get out of the way thanks to their distance from Twilight.

"Miryo, just focus on healing. From what I saw in Jugatsu's memories, if you're healed in game it seems to help even with the real body,"Coinchii shouted to her across the large strip of data hole that was freshly created by Twilight.

Twilight let out a scream and teleported closer, a smaller beam already flying at Coinchii. The beam hit dead on, too quick for Coinchii to block. Ryo stood back up, Twilight's attack was fast but didn't pack as much power. While it was painful, it was relatively easy to ignore.

"This pain is nothing compared what Jugatsu endured. There's no way I'm staying down from such a weak attack,"Coinchii shouted, jumping forward and slashing at Twilight.

Twilight quickly spun around using her two swords as a shield against Coinchii's attacks. She followed up her defense with a psychic hold and Coinchii found himself unable to move.

"You want a bigger attack?"Twilight asked.

Coinchii's body began moving on its own. The first thing his body did was drop his sword, afterwards he put his arms out wide against his will, leaving himself exposed to any attack. White energy soon began seeping out of Twilight's body, rising into the air. Twilight closed her eyes, preparing for her attack.

_Dammit, get away, Sakura. _Coinchii thought, unable to speak, as Miryo was trying to pull him away.

The attack was unleashed, two small beams shot out past Coinchii, a good way across the field, but the explosion was unbelievable. The beam almost reached the horizon of their sight, but the explosion fell only a few yards of making contact with Coinchii and Miryo. Coinchii picked up his sword, but his hands were shaking after witnessing such an attack. Coinchii had to force himself to look at Twilight.

"I made it,"AnakinseZ said, panting, sword drawn and next to Twilight who had a gash in her side.

His attack threw Twilight's aim off it seemed. There was a white glow around the wound and it was quickly healed.

"Don't interfere,"Twilight shouted, unleashing a wave of psychic power towards AnakinseZ.

He managed to hold his ground for a few seconds before the wave of psychic power picked him off the ground and threw him back at least fifty feet. Luckily, he managed to avoid any data holes.

"Zero, get out here,"Twilight said suddenly.

"Zero?"Coinchii asked, recieving yet another surprise as Zero appeared next to Twilight from golden rings.

"Stop that guy from intefering again, I almost had Coinchii,"Twilight ordered.

"Zero, are you-"Coinchii began to ask.

Zero took one glance at Coinchii before his weapons appeared from his bracer. In the blink of the an eye Zero was charging towards AnakinseZ, who was in a defensive stance.

"Why would Zero be working for Twilight?"Miryo asked, standing behind Coinchii who hadn't moved since grabbing his weapon.

A ball of light suddenly hit Miryo sending her flying.

"Sakura!"Coinchii shouted, turning towards Miryo.

Miryo slid to the edge of a data hole. It was easy to see she was in pain.

"Now it's just me and you,"Twilight said, floating closer to Coinchii.

Coinchii let out a shout and charged at Twilight, slashing twice, but missing both times. Twilight's hand came out from her sleeve and threw a ball of energy at Coinchii. Coinchii figured by this point that beam attacks required charging while merely throwing the energy balls was quick and required no charging beyond summoning the energy. Coinchii slashed through the first ball of energy, making it explode right in front of him. Thanks to it, Twilight missed him as a larger ball of energy appeared from the smoke. Coinchii slashed through the smoke, creating a small line to look though. Twilight was just on the other side, waiting for Coinchii.

"So it's true. Momiri had her suspicions, but there wasn't any real evidence until now,"AnakinseZ said, blocking attacks by Zero.

Zero continued attacking, not responding to anything AnakinseZ spoke of. Despite AnakinseZ's experience and skill in playing, Zero still had him topped and was slowly, but surely pushing AnakinseZ backwards.

"Why are you working for Twilight?"AnakinseZ asked.

The question only seemed to aggitate Zero as he suddenly began attacking faster, but also with less aim. AnakinseZ took advantage of the situation and spun his sword around 360 degrees in front of him. It knocked back any of Zero's attacks, and gave AnakinseZ a good opportunity to get in an attack. AnakinseZ decided to take it, and thrusted his sword towards Zero who leaped back. AnakinseZ got back in his battle stance, waiting for Zero to approach, but instead Zero just pointed his hand towards AnakinseZ. AnankinseZ remained motionless, wondering if it was possible for him to have powers similar to Twilight. He barely had time to react, it wasn't an energy or psychic attack, but the blade from Zero's weapon shot out towards AnakinseZ. It skimmed by, but still managed to cut AnakinseZ's arm. Since the area was in the influence of the AI however, an attack like that still had a physical effect, causing AnakinseZ to feel a sting from it. The weapon retreated back via a chain pully within Zero's weapon.

"Damn event weapons,"AnakinseZ muttered, repositioning his sword for better defense reaction.

Coinchii managed to get up to Twilight and slashed at her three times, but no matter what Coinchii did he couldn't land a hit on Twilight who continued to defy gravity, hovering backwards whenever Coinchii attacked.

"I'll have to try something else then, but what?"Coinchii said to himself.

Twilight's hands emerged from her sleeves once again, meaning she was throwing more energy balls. Coinchii's body tried to react by itself, but Coinchii held it back. He was surrounded on the sides and back by data holes and if he dodged liked he normally would, he would've ended up jumping into it. Instead Ryo tried to imitate Jugatsu's move from the fight with Azara and charged towards the energy balls. When the energy balls got close, Ryo threw his wieght back, making himself fall backwards, avoiding both energy balls. Before actually landing on the ground though, he caught himself with his free hand and pushed himself up, spinning around in a slash aimed at Twilight. Once again however, Twilight merely hovered backwards, this time she was above a data hole.

----------

"I know I'm an apprentice, Code, but you can't just send them in like that. You're thinking is clouded when your angry, I'm telling you to let me take command for now,"Kaiyen shouted to Code who sat helplessly in front of his computer, unable to tell what was happening due to Twilight's presence scrambling the data.

"It's my mistake, I'll fix it myself,"Code said, typing at the computer in an attempt to accomplish something.

"We can't contact them and the only person who we could find to help them was AnakinseZ. Sakura fell unconsious and was taken to the infirmary. It's because you're angry and you put no thought into what to do after finding Twilight!"Kaiyen shouted.

Code looked down at the keyboard, knowing it was true. All of the surrounding data phases, looked away, not wanting to get involved with the arguement.

"Fine. I have no choice but to take your point. I'll leave you in charge,"Code said, taking his headset off and tossing it in the chair, walking away.

"Even while angry his abilities are still better than most people's, but when he gets angry he doesn't think ahead,"Kaiyen said to himself, putting the headset on and sitting down,"Now how do I get them out of there?"

----------

AnakinseZ cursed under his breath. When Zero began his long range attacking, AnakinseZ found it even harder to keep up with the blocking. The direct attacks were easy enough, but when AnakinseZ tried advancing, Zero began using his long range blade attack in other ways. By moving his wrists the right way or taking advantage of gravity, AnakinseZ found himself getting attacked from everywhere except his back. It was only a matter of time before Zero used another trick to attack him from behind though.

Coinchii wasn't doing any better though. Once again to three sides of him, there was nothing but data holes. This time however, it was to the front, left, and back. He had no choice and got ready to run for it as soon as he destroyed the next energy ball Twilight would throw.

"You think I'm that stupid?"Twilight said.

The next attack was so quick Coinchii didn't even notice Twilight threw another energy ball until he heard the explosion to his right. Coinchii stabbed the ground with his weapon. All he had left was a five foot wide circular-esk piece of land. He was now surrounded on all sounds by the abyss of the data stream, and he wasn't about to try jumping since he'd would have to clear atleast 20 feet, something out his ability. The stage was too damaged. Coinchii finally realized this as he looked around. It was in bad shape before they entered and now most of the land in the area belonged to the data abyss.

The angle of Zero's next attack was impossible to block. After gaurding to his left, the other blade arched around and was already heading at AnakinseZ's back. Still trying to fight, AnakinseZ turned, swinging his sword, but he was too slow and the blade stabbed into AnakinseZ's shoulder before withdrawing and pulling blood with it.

"Even...if this is...in a game...the blood...really makes me uncomfortable,"AnakinseZ grunted, his arm twitching before falling to his side.

"Just be grateful that in the real world it can be fixed. Technology has progressed that far, right?"Zero replied, slashing at the air, sending the blood from his weapons.

His weapons disappeared in his bracers and Zero turned towards Twilight. AnakinseZ realized it at this point. Even though Zero did betray them he didn't seem to want to kill them. It wasn't against Zero's will, he willingly chose to ally with Twilight, but why? That was still beyond AnakinseZ. AnakinseZ gave into his defeat, and put his weapon away on his back, holding his right shoulder in an attempt to ease the pain. He looked over at Twilight and was wide-eyed. He saw Coinchii on his small remnants of land and Twilight's arm stretched out towards him.

"I have nothing else I can do, dammit. Even after Miryo was injured I couldn't do anything,"Coinchii said angrily, punching the ground repeatedly.

He couldn't hear anything from Twilight even after he stopped talking and continued punching the ground. Coinchii finally stopped and looked at Twilight.

"Aren't you going to do something now? Kill Jugatsu whose in me? Absorb me so you can get access to his data?"Coinchii asked spitefully.

"I'm merely enjoying your defeat. You whose caused me so much trouble, and the bastard inside of you who put me through this needless ordeal in an attempt to gain freedom from this mere game,"Twilight said, her words leading into a laugh.

"Freedom?"Coinchii asked, still angry about his loss.

"These swords on my back will allow me to leave this game and enter the real world. However, due to the fact this body is partially that witch Dawn's, I'm unable to use them. However if I can get access to Jugatsu's bracelet I can use it's immense power to reconfigure my body. I can remove the damn limiter Dawn placed on her own body, adjust my appearance, and anything else. If you can imagine it, that bracelet can accomplish it. And like the fool players who held these swords, Jugatsu was ignorant to the power he could access through that bracelet. When I finish up with the bracelet, I couldn't care less what happens because I'll use these swords to create a hole, allowing me escape into the real world."

"What then?"Coinchii asked.

"Then? I'll do whatever I want. Conquor the world, destroy it, start an empire, if I find the world entertaining I could live normally in it for some laughs, I could do whatever I want. Nothing would be able to stop me,"Twilight replied, an evil happiness in her voice.

"I never would've figured losing in here would have such a drastic consequence. I suppose in the back of my mind I always figured that if worse came to worse we would be able to just shut down "The World". Sure we would be sacrificing Jugatsu, but he'd probably be willing to make that sacrifice...Long story short, if it's come to this, I still have one option left,"Coinchii said, now standing up.

"It seems I no longer have enjoyment from your defeat. I'll move to the next step,"Twilight said, her hand glowing.

"I'm not going to give you that chance,"Coinchii shouted, grabbing his sword and jumping at Twilight who merely hovered back to dodge it.

_Perfect, she dodged what she thought was an attack but was really me just jumping into the data abyss. This way she can't get to Jugatsu. I didn't think I'd end up doing something this extreme though. _Coinchii thought, staring into the data abyss. He resigned himself to his fate and closed his eyes, awaiting for his character's data destruction. However when it didn't come Coinchii slowly opened his eyes.

"If you want to die that badly commit suicide after I'm through with you,"Twilight shouted, using her powers to slam Coinchii back onto island.

Coinchii opened his mouth to shout in pain, but the land from beneath him covered his mouth and limbs. It was Kiiro's power, Twilight was warping the land in order to keep Coinchii from moving without having to make use of her psychic powers. Coinchii wondered if it was because there was a limit on her powers, or if she wasn't sure how much energy her next action would consume.

Her hand began glowing once again and this time instead of a circle appearing in front of herself the circle appeared on the ground next to Coinchii. There was an immense amount of pain following as a single rope of light came out from the middle of it. It shot straight up before doing a U-turn and impaling Coinchii's stomach. Due to the land covering his mouth he was unable to scream, and unable to move. It felt as if he would die, unable to react to the pain which for him was unendurable. Originally a rope of white light, after it began to absorb Coinchii's data it turned into a black light, and the circle was slowly turning black as well.

"What's she doing?"AnakinseZ asked, slowly standing up.

"She's bringing Jugatsu out of Coinchii,"Zero answered, facing the scene.

"Bringing Jugatsu...out of Coinchii?"AnakinseZ asked, standing up for the most part, albiet hunched over due to pain.

"Just like how Twilight has been slowly recovering since what you guys decided to call the Twilight Swords Incident, so has Jugatsu. The reason Twilight waited to start persueing Jugatsu was because Twilight already came to that conclusion. So Twilight waited until she could completely sense Jugatsu within Coinchii. Obviously extracting his data from Coinchii before he recovered enough would prove to be troublesome if his physical form wasn't at least ready. Even now, Twilight hasn't completely recovered, but if she can get access to Jugatsu's bracelet, then it won't matter how recovered she currently is because of all the power she'll be able to access via the bracelet."

"How will she get Jugatsu's bracelet from him?"AnakinseZ asked, curious.

"All she needs to do is attack Jugatsu until he's too weak to even move. At such a point he can't use the bracelet's power and Twilight will have ample time to use her powers to access it. After she's done with it she'll use her new powers to take the bracelet. Or at least she believes she'll be able to."

"How do you know all this?"AnakinseZ asked, knowing beyond a doubt at this point Zero joined her of his own will.

"When Twilight is finally ready to leave, I'm going with her. As you know, I had an accident in the real world and unable to cope with the pain of reality, I escaped into "The World". But after so many years of being in here I grew tired of this place. Twilight has promised me that I'll be able to escape with her. In exchange she needed three things. My loyalty to her, for me to listen to her commands, and to work as a spy and provide with her information were the three things she needed. The best part is when I escape to the real world I'll have this body so not only will I not have to cope with the previous problems, I'll have the body of a super human,"Zero replied, more serious than AnakinseZ had ever seen him.

"You endangered everyone in this world, the real world, and betrayed your friends in order to make yourself happy!? You belong with Twilight,"AnakinseZ replied, angry.

"How would you know how it feels? Besides as you already know you can't stop me even when you're at your best, you can't even land one attack,"Zero said, provoking AnakinseZ to attempt another strike.

AnakinseZ cursed himself, knowing it was true, and since his right arm was useless at this point he'd be at even more of a disadvantage.

The white circle by this point was almost completely black and Coinchii had no energy left to even react to the pain. As soon as this finished, Coinchii knew he wouldn't be able to move. AnakinseZ had vanished from his sight since he protected Coinchii from Twilight's attack at the start. Same with Zero. Coinchii wasn't sure who would be stronger if they were fighting, perhaps they were still fighting now. If so, it didn't look like anyone would be able to save him.

The rope of black light finally left Coinchii, vanishing in the circle which was now completely black. Coinchii could here Twilight's laugh. Without any energy, he found it hard to even keep his eyes open, so he was unable to see anything except the blue sky that covered the field. Unlike everything that was happening beneath it, the sky still looked so calm. Virtual or not, the sky was something that didn't have to worry about what happened, because it wasn't something that could be affected by anything. It was unfair that it could get by without worry. Coinchii closed his eyes, jealous, defeated, useless, and awaited for Twilight to finish him off, knowing that the only thing saving his life was just taken by force from him.

----------

"Kaiyen, Ryo's eyes!"someone shouted suddenly.

"What about them?"Kaiyen asked, thinking at first Jugatsu had taken over.

"His red eye returned to normal. They're closed now, but before he closed his eyes the camera in his helmet picked up footage of his red eye slowly changing blue, like his other one."

"Code put that camera in the helmet because Ryo's eyes turned red when Jugatsu took over, since they both turned blue...what does that mean?"Kaiyen asked, unable tell what was occuring within that map.

That was when he made a decision that seemed blantenly obvious, and at the same time useless, but as for now needed. Kaiyen removed the head set and walked over to his old computer in the room. He put on the helmet and began to sign in as the Long Arm, Orion.

----------

"It's,"AnakinseZ replied, astounded at what he was seeing.

"I told you,"Zero stated, watching it as well.

"Finally, after all this time,"Twilight said, revealing her hand and getting a large ball of energy ready.

The circle next to the now unconscience Coinchii had vanished. Kneeling where it was once positioned was a twinblade with spiky, blond hair. He wore a tight, black shirt underneath a black leather vest. Over a good portion of his chest and almost completely covering his arms were bandages that disappeared beneath his black, leather gauntlet. He had black, large pants on that covered the top of his black shoes. His large black cloak moved when he stood up and covered everything from the neck down. He pushed it to the side with his right hand pointed at Coinchii. On his wrist his blocky, golden bracelet began to glow. In a flash of light Coinchii vanished.

"Now that he's back in town, I have to get off of this island,"Jugatsu stated, pulling his daggers out.

They looked normal, but his bracelet began to glow once more and the two daggers turned into swords that were completely black with the exception of a golden tip that ran down the blade and into the black handle.

"Let's see how used to this bracelet I still am,"Jugatsu said once more, the bracelet shining with a golden light yet again.

Jugatsu disappeared in a golden light and appeared on a larger mass of land. He still felt slightly nervous about the fact the data abyss took up most of the level.

----------

Orion appeared in Dun Lorieg, before teleporting to Theta Flying Apple Merchant Hometown, he paused. There was a large crowd circled around someone. Orion forced his way through and found Coinchii laying on the ground.

"He's probably just another player that fell asleep while playing, it's pretty common."

"Some people actually find places to sleep in "The World" just so they don't have to log off."

"Why would someone sleep in the middle of the walkway to the Chaos Gate though?"

Orion stepped in at this point, and picked up Coinchii.

"I'll move him, everyone's blocking the path to the Chaos Gate by surrounding this guy,"Orion stated, pretending to be a normal player.

Orion took off his headset for a moment to order someone to get Ryo. Afterwards he moved Coinchii's body to the side of a building and laid him down until someone logged him off. He returned to the Chaos Gate and, after making sure no one was around to follow him, said the area word and vanished.

He appeared in Theta Flying Apple Merchant Hometown to find most of the level of ruined. He appeared in an area that was by the edge of the land and almost fell into the data abyss, just by warping in. He looked around, spotting AnakinseZ standing by Zero. Off a fair distance he saw another character he almost didn't recognize staring at Twilight. Orion ran to AnakinseZ and Zero who were closer to confirm whether or not that was the whole Jugatsu.

"Someone else has come,"AnakinseZ said, looking at Orion as he jumped and ran on all the remaining pieces of land.

Zero didn't hesitate and launched a long range blade attack as soon as Orion landed, however Orion used his spear and twisted the chain around the body of his spear. Zero merely grinned and used his other blade to launch another attack while pulling in his blade, Orion's spear with it.

"No way,"AnakinseZ responded, upon Orion's action.

Orion continued to hold onto his spear and twisted it around in order to do same thing he did with the first chain, to Zero's second.

"Impressive, even while he was being pulled in he held onto his spear and used it to tie up both chains. Now Zero will have to drag Orion into close range, where he'll have the advantage due to his spear being able to attack at a longer distance while not being far away enough for Zero to his long range attack

"I think it's about time we stop talking and just fight,"Jugatsu said casually to Twilight who looked angry at the fact Jugatsu was able to use the bracelet's power without becoming as tired as when Twilight used her powers.

"Maybe another time. You should be grateful you have your own body back. Also I'm not about to lie, I know I'm in no shape to fight after performing such an advanced skill as dividing your data from that boy's,"Twilight responded.

"I probably would be grateful if it wasn't for the fact you were just after this,"Jugatsu replied, raising his wrist towards Twilight.

Twilight merely frowned and teleported to Zero.

"Twilight,"Orion shouted, still being pulled in slowly by Zero.

"We're retreating for now,"Twilight stated.

Zero nodded and vanished along with Twilight's white light. His chains vanished, leaving Orion and his spear free. There was a golden light and Jugatsu appeared near AnakinseZ and Orion.

"You're Jugatsu, right? What happened? You have your body back,"Orion replied, surprised.

AnakinseZ retold the events from his entrance to the point where Orion appeared. Afterwards, he excused himself. He wanted to call someone to transport him to the hospital. His left shoulder still stung from Zero's first long range attack and his right arm wasn't responding from the other attack.

"If what Zero said was true, about the swords and Twilight's plans. Then you'll have to stay somewhere safe. Do you know any places where you can remain hidden? Everyone whose trying to stop Twilight will know about you soon enough, but I'd prefer if you avoid interaction with normal players for the time being,"Orion asked.

"No problem, I know just the place if no one else is there. It's in Mac Anu. Just ask Skyld or AnakinseZ if they're on, they should know where the place is,"Jugatsu replied.

His daggers returned to normal and he put them away. The two warped back out to town.

"Let me know when Ryo gets better. When I was in his head I was aware what happening to him, but not to anything around him. When I finally returned to being myself and inside my body, I found him unconscience. I used the bracelet to send him to town, but I don't know what happened afterwards,"Jugatsu said low enough for Orion alone to hear.

"Of course. He'll probably be back on as soon as he hears about you anyways,"Orion replied.

Jugatsu nodded and warped to Mac Anu as Orion logged out.

----------

Kaiyen removed his helmet and gave out orders to the data phases.

_I'll have to tell Code what I was told. What happens next is a decision that can only be made by his authority. I would've liked to ask Jugatsu more, but at the moment it's best to take what we had to take since it's a good amount of information and with such a drastic turn of events, anything Code might have planned will most likely be altered now. _Kaiyen thought as he gave out orders.

----------

Jugatsu sat against the wall of his old hang out spot. He enjoyed the view and it seemed nobody else knew about it still.

"Everything will probably end quickly, now,"Jugatsu said aloud to himself.

* * *

Hope everyone liked the chapter. Reviews and such welcome. I've made some progress on chapter 37, but I can't really estimate a release time at the moment due to the fact I'll be unable to work on it for at least the next three days, and following that I'm unsure of what I'll be doing and whether or not I'll have any chances to work on 37. 


	37. Chapter 37:Zero

Kind of a short chapter compared to the usual length of my chapters, but...Hopefully everyone still likes it. And since I haven't done it in awhile. I do now own .hack, the concept of "The World", or anything along those lines. I do however this story, the characters, and these along that line...not that they're worth anything, but meh. Anyways, enjoy.

* * *

"Is that possible?"Jugatsu asked Code, via Code's headset.

"There's still no telling what'll happen after we do it, but it'd better than your current situation,"Code replied.

"I'll have to give it some thought, it's tempting, but..."

"Alright, no problem,"Code said, before taking off his headset and walking out.

Ryo ran in just as Code was exiting.

"Jugatsu has his own body back?"Ryo asked, skidding to a stop by Code.

"You've recovered,"Code replied, before nodding.

Ryo ran over to his computer and quickly logged on.

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"My body still feels a bit hard to control, but it's easier than when I first appeared,"Jugatsu answered.

"I can't believe you've actually returned. I mean, Momiri told me everything, but it just seemed too good to be true,"Skyld replied, sitting in the dead-end opening in Mac Anu.

"You look the same as we last saw you, only this time you're not beat-up, it's amazing,"AnakinseZ said yet again.

"Jugatsu!"someone suddenly shouted from the alley that lead into their spot.

Everyone looked over and saw Coinchii running into the alley.

"Well, Coinchii, I suppose this is technically the first time we've met,"Jugatsu said, standing up and facing Coinchii.

"I heard that Twilight extracted you from me a-"Coinchii began.

"Yeah, thanks to Twilight I now have my own body back. I still plan on defeating her though,"Jugatsu replied.

"How abo-"

"About everything that's happened? I've been informed in pretty much everything up until now. You don't have to worry,"Jugatsu answered.

There was silence as Coinchii and Jugatsu stared at eachother. Coinchii looked as if he was insulted somehow.

"Mind if he joins us on our task?"Jugatsu asked Skyld and AnakinseZ.

"Task?"Coinchii responded.

"Well if AnakinseZ is the party leader I suppose we could. October does have it uses,"Skyld answered.

"I have no problem with it. Coinchii is a fairly good swordsman,"AnakinseZ replied.

"Alright then. Coinchii, we've been given a task by Momiri. You're aware of Zero's betrayel and I assume you know how big of a danger this could be. Even if he isn't hearing information through our mouths, he still has other ways to obtain information that we don't know of. We can't leave him alone now that he's turned against the system. Since he'd be easier to track down than Twilight, we're going to search for him. Our primary target for now is Zero, unless Twilight is with him, in which case she becomes our target,"Jugatsu briefed.

"But when I got here it didn't look you were getting prepared for a mission at all. It looked as if you guys were talking,"Coinchii pointed out.

"Azara is doing the actual tracking. Since Zero is a character she can check through logs and find out all kinds of information from monsters he's killed, to where he's gone, and what time those things happened,"Skyld explained.

"Oh."

Before anything could be said further, Momiri appeared on the boat in front of the four.

"Alright, Azara thinks she found Zero, I'll warp us to the location, get your party ready,"Momiri ordered.

"'Why's CC Corp doing this, instead of Code?'. That's what you're thinking, right, Coinchii?"Jugatsu said as the party was being formed.

"How did - Do you read minds?"Coinchii asked, looking upset.

"No, I've just been in your mind for long enough. The answer is that, while CC Corp does have to take care of other aspects of "The World" it doesn't just leave all the Twilight work to Code. You're just around Code more, so it seems like he does more than CC Corp,"Jugatsu answered.

The five of them vanished in golden rings and appeared in a wasteland-styled field. Dead trees and large stones decorated the field's land. The only landmark visible was a near-by graveyard, which, according to Momiri, was where Zero would be.

"According to his travel log, Azara says Zero hangs around this map whenever he seems to have nothing to do. It's an area without a dungeon and the monsters are strong, so not many people come here unless they're doing some serious training. Azara said he recently warped into this map and she hasn't seen anything about him warping out,"Momiri said.

"Zero's strong though, can we take him?"Coinchii asked.

"Two of the most famous players in "The World", and the guy who saved "The World" from a powerful AI, are in the team, don't get nervous,"Skyld said.

_They seem to be acting differently now that I'm out of Ryo. I wonder if it's because I have a body now...No...It's their confidence. With my appearance it seems everyone's become more confident. Ryo seems disappointed, though..._ Jugatsu thought as the four headed towards the graveyard.

"Wait, without an AI here, won't a fight be nothing more than a normal system fight?"Coinchii asked.

"Zero's in the same situation I'm in, whether an AIs here or not, his mind has been trapped in his character and because of that we have all of our senses. You should be familiar with it,"Jugatsu said, referring to when he shared his memories with Ryo.

"Everyone ready?"AnakinseZ asked, pulling his weapon out.

The four were now standing outside out of the graveyard, in front of a large broken down gate. The graveyard was pretty big, at least 100 graves were in it and a few mausoleums were placed amongst the graves. AnakinseZ took the first step inside.

"Look out!"Skyld shouted, pushing AnakinseZ forward before jumping backwards.

One of Zero's blades was imbedded in the ground, via chain attack. Jugatsu quickly scanned over it, trying to find Zero. The chain disappeared into a mausoleum. Jugatsu ran towards the mausoleum, everyone else following, but they were blocked by a monster which pulled itself out of the ground. It was at least 15 feet tall and it's body looked as if it was made of stone. The monster had the basic shape of a human, but the hands of the monster were two blades, one covering the second blade. The monster's head looked like a cross between a bat and bull. On the monster's back there was what appeared to be skeletal wings, but whether they were useful or not, Jugatsu couldn't tell.

"It was bait,"AnakinseZ said, stepping forward.

Skyld charged forward first. The monster's reach was farther, but Skyld jumped to the side easy enough to dodge the attack. His attack managed to somewhat damage the monster, but it would take awhile to kill it with attacks like those.

AnakinseZ and Coinchii began to run forward to attack, but Jugatsu suddenly called out,"Hold on, we can't waste time with this guy and I have an idea."

Skyld rolled out of the way of another attack and ran back to Jugatsu, AnakinseZ and Coinchii didn't have far to retreat to. Jugatsu focused on the bracelet and held his wrist out towards the monster.

"Data Absorbtion?"Coinchii asked.

"Jugatsu calls it Data Drain, though,"AnakinseZ said, watching with a grin.

Everyone was surprised by the next sight. Instead of using Data Drain, Jugatsu opened his fist and a ball of golden light was in his hand.

"So it does work,"Jugatsu said, with a chuckle.

Jugatsu raised his arm and threw the energy ball at the monster, destroying it in one hit due to the fact it was an illegal attack.

"Now we can continue towards Zero's mausoleum,"AnakinseZ said running ahead.

"That monster was probably a distraction, I doubt he'd be in there still,"Jugatsu responded, following.

Jugatsu was right. As the four reached the mausoleum, the door to it was further pushed open, meaning Zero had escaped.

"Next time a monster attacks, only one person should stay back. If all monsters are like that first one, it should be easy enough to dodge and get past, but we don't want them chasing us,"Skyld explained.

"What about me?"Coinchii asked, pointing at himself.

"Oh, yeah, you're still at a lower level than us so you probably can't do damage to the monsters, or if you can it'll be next to nothing,"AnakinseZ commented.

Coinchii's head fell, insulted.

"I'm also a lower level thanks to the fact I've been stuck in his head for ages,"Jugatsu commented, in a poorly organized attempt to make Coinchii better.

"You say it as if it's my fault,"Coinchii replied.

"Jugatsu has the bracelet, though..."Skyld commented, ignoring Coinchii's depression.

"I wonder,"Jugatsu said, walking behind Coinchii.

"What?"Coinchii asked, about to turn around.

"Stay there."

Coinchii froze. Jugatsu held his wrist towards Coinchii's weapon.

_If this works on my weapons, maybe I can give Coinchii some powerful weapons. His level wouldn't matter then, _Jugatsu thought as the bracelet began to shine.

"What are you doing?"Coinchii asked, seeing hints of the light in front of him.

"I'm going to try and make your weapons more powerful. I can do it to mine, but I never tried it on anyone else,"Jugatsu stated.

There was a silence as Jugatsu focused on what he had in mind. With the company of Jugatsu shouting 'Weapon Boost', Coinchii's weapon began to glow golden. His latest weapon which, had a pure white blade and blue handle, Sky Sword, was now completely black, with the exception of a strip of gold outlining the blade's edges, from the base to the triangle shaped end.

"There, I'm not sure how powerful it is, but it should still be better than your previous weapon by a good deal of strength,"Jugatsu commented, as his arm vanishing beneath his cloak.

"Now we should go after Zero. Be prepared for an attack from anywhere until we find out where he is,"AnakinseZ ordered, walking past a few tombstones.

The others followed, keeping an eye out for any signs of an attack. After a few minutes of looking Zero was still nowhere to be found. AnakinseZ had sent a message to Momiri requesting information on whether or not Zero had left the area, but according to Momiri, Azara's data showed no signs of anyone leaving the level. So they continued to look until two more monsters, the same kind as the first one, appeared.

"What are these things anyways?"Coinchii asked, grabbing his weapon.

"They're called Grave Guards. I can handle them, you three keep going,"Skyld said, his weapon drawn.

The other three ran past the monsters, dodging their attacks and ignoring their roars. One attempted to follow the three, but Skyld attacked it and took it's attention.

The first Grave Guard thrust it's blade-hand towards Skyld, but due to its lack of speed, Skyld effortlessly dodged it to the side and countered with two blows to the arm. It withdrew its arm and roared at Skyld who ignored it due to the fact the second Grave Guard had attempted an attack. Instead of attacking the second Grave Guard, Skyld ran two steps up its arm and jumped off, getting two slices into the first one once more, but this time knocking it over as well. When the first Grave Guard was down on its back, Skyld managed to finish it off with a series of blows.

After delivering the final stike to the first Grave Guard, the second one managed to catch Skyld off guard, hitting him with its forearm and knocking him back a few feet. Skyld stood up and shook his head. It was actually pretty refreshing being able to do something related to Twilight without the threat of being physically injured. Dodging the Grave Guard's next attack, Skyld managed to land a few attacks before he stepped back to prepare for the next slow attack. The next attack missed, Skyld advanced, and after a few more blows were dealt, the monster fell back, defeated and blowing away as if it was dust.

----------

"The graveyard is a decent size, but it shouldn't be this hard to find him,"Jugatsu stated.

"Momiri said he hasn't left the area, but he may have left the graveyard. As long as we use our radar we should be able to find each other if one of us comes across Zero, but I'd rather be sure he's no longer in here before looking around aimlessly in a field with no easily recognizable landmark,"AnakinseZ replied.

----------

"Right. Now I gotta catch up to the others,"Skyld said, after putting his weapon away.

"Why are you here?"someone suddenly asked.

A shadow appeared by Skyld. He turned around and followed the shadow, finding Zero standing on top of the mausoleum he was hiding in before. The moonlight that shone from behind him covered him in darkness, making him look sinister.

"We're here to stop you and learn where Twilight is,"Skyld stated, his hand on his sword in case Zero attacked.

"You think you can defeat me?"Zero asked.

It wasn't until now Skyld saw the side of Zero that was usually hidden. Around others it must have been an act, but with nothing left to gain by acting, the sullen face of Zero and his true attitude were revealed. Skyld was left without any urge to fight anymore. It was impossible to imagine what it must be like, being trapped inside "The World" for a time span longer than Skyld had even been playing, he could understand someone growing tired of it. The face which just a moment ago looked sinister, now looked sullen and back into a corner.

Skyld removed his hand from his sword, looking up at Zero, before saying,"I'd rather not fight. Before Twilight it would be a lie to say that we weren't your friends. Even you have to agree on this. As your friends...we still want to help if possible. Jugatsu was speaking to me earlier about a proposal that was offered to him by Code after everything is finished."

Skyld paused, waiting to see if Zero would make any comment. When it seemed apparent that Zero was waiting for Skyld to continue, he did so.

"The offer is similar to what Twilight has offered you. After everything finishes, Code is willing to let Jugatsu access the powers of the Twilight Swords to return to the real world. Like you, he has no body in the real world and exists completely in here. Both of you are in the same situation. The only difference is...After telling me all of this, Jugatsu told me his response. He was hesitant to accept, due to the fact he would still have the body from inside "The World". He has faith in himself, but not enough to trust that kind of power while in the real world. You, however, went to this extreme to escape. Twilight mercilessly absorbed Aqua, she obviously just cares about herself. It'd be better if you worked with us. I'm sure Code would offer you the same offer if you proved you were trustworthy."

Code still stood there, not speaking, his face still the same.

"Even...if Twilight did win, we would all die, you would escape to the real world. There's no telling what would happen to you after you made it to the real world. Twilight might expect you to continue working as her minion, she might kill you, she might destroy everything you looked forward to in the real world. I know your style. You make it obvious you only like doing things you benifit from. Return to our side and you'll still benifit. In fact, you'd benifit more...That's all I have to say. You have to make the decision now because we can't wait, and if your answer is to still remain with Twilight, then-"Skyld pulled out his sword,"-I will do my best to defeat you."

Despite what he said, Skyld still had no real desire to fight Zero. Zero closed his eyes.

"Skyld, you haven't moved in awhile, are you okay?"said a message AnakinseZ sent.

"I'm calling over the others, if you don't decide by then, I'll have have to treat you as if you're still with Twilight,"Skyld said, as he replied to AnakinseZ's message.

"You're absolute,"Zero responded suddenly.

Skyld almost didn't catch what he had said. Zero jumped down and ran at Skyld who didn't budge. A blade came out of the left bracer and the arm curved, aiming for the neck. Skyld held his position unflinching. The blade stopped centimeters from Skyld's throat.

"Yeah, I'm absolute. We're going to stop Twilight,"Skyld said, looking at Zero.

"Very well. I'll join you on the grounds that I'll be allowed out of the "The World" after all of this over. And as proof of this agreement I'll share whatever information I can on Twilight."

Skyld smiled and offered his hand out to Zero. Zero's blade retreated back to it's holder as Zero took Skyld's hand and shook on it.

The other three arrived at last, surprised at Zero's appearance.

"I've managed to convince him to rejoin us, but I'll have to speak Code before we really do anything further,"Skyld said.

_It's obvious what's going on. The only way you could get Zero to join us and abandon Twilight's offer, is if we offer something better. Since Skyld wants to speak to Code, he's going to see if he can convince Code to give him the same offer I was given, I wonder if the others will pick up on this? _Jugatsu thought to himself as he watched Coinchii and AnakinseZ approach Zero.

"No point in me explaining it. Besides if I'm right, the others might be hesitant to accept Zero, thinking he doesn't care which side he's on as long as he gets out. That could cause conflict,"Jugatsu said to himself in a low voice.

----------

"I suppose the information he brought us is good information, but unlike Jugatsu, he's proven himself to work only for the sake of self-gain. If I do offer him the ability to exit "The World", it's more like we're hiring him. I prefer true loyalty over paying for loyalty,"Code replied.

Jugatsu and Skyld were in the dead end beyond the alley in Mac Anu discussing Zero.

"So it's as I thought,"Jugatsu replied.

"Huh?"Skyld replied, confused at Jugatsu's comment.

"I trust Zero enough, and if it was me I would make the deal,"Jugatsu said to Skyld,"However, for other people who don't trust Zero as much, it only seems as if it's the offer to go to the real world that keeps Zero working with them."

"The only information Zero's kept from us, is where Twilight now stays when she's not doing something and the only reason he's holding that back is because he wants to know he's trusted enough to be given that offer,"Skyld defended.

"I understand Jugatsu's case and he has proven himself several times so I have no problem making the offer to him. Zero may be in the same situation but the way he operates isn't to my liking. If you can prove he's with us for more than just escaping "The World", then I'll go with it, but not until then," Code decided.

"Alright, Skyld, let's go then, I already know a way to prove it. Code, just continue to listen to us,"Jugatsu said towards the sky.

Skyld sent Zero a message. After recieving a reply Skyld and Jugatsu headed for the meeting point. After changing servers and arriving in Dun Lorieg they headed for the grunty stables, finding Zero leaning against the fence.

"Just follow me,"Jugatsu whispered as they approached Zero.

"You spoke with Code and wanted to discuss the results?"Zero stated as the two walked closer.

"It's kind of difficult,"Jugatsu began.

Skyld remained quiet, unsure of what Jugatsu was going to try.

"What is?"Zero asked.

"Code wants your help, but he doesn't want to give you the offer. He said I've proven myself so he has no problem with me, but...in your case,"Jugatsu said.

_What kind of plan is this?! You're basically telling him what happened at the meeting!_ Skyld thought.

"If he can't grant me the offer I don't know if I want to work for him...I suppose I deserve it though,"Zero replied, completely out of character for his usual self.

"What do you want to do now?"Jugatsu asked.

"I suppose if I'm not being given the offer, I have no reason to work against Twilight. However, I have no intentions of working with Twilight again. If you want to fight him, you can go to the final battleground of last time,"Zero said, standing up and beginning to walk away.

"Wait, the map from last time?'

"Yeah, like everything else, it still existed, but it took a lot of work to bring it back. This part of the information I kept hidden as well. Twilight originally intended on having the map be her base. The Deletion Zone was just a temporary base until she finished work on the map. If you do a scan through the system for unlinked maps, you'll probably run across it because the only way to get to that map is through the Deletion Zone which...as far as the system's concerned, doesn't exist,"Zero explained.

"I knew it,"Jugatsu said, sending a party request to Skyld and Zero.

Zero looked surprised at first, but accepted the invitation anyways.

"How was that, Code? Trust him now?"Jugatsu asked, his party and Code the only ones able of hearing him.

"Very well acted. It seems he really does have no inention of returning to Twilight and he was still kind enough to tell us how to get to Twilight...I see no reason not to trust him anymore, he has nothing left to lose, and I already found the map by going into the deletion zone and looking for linked maps. There was one link for each server and then the map, just as he stated,"Code replied.

"So that means-"Zero replied, surprised.

"Yeah, after all of this over, if you want we can use the Twilight Swords to grant you access to the real world."

"Thank you,"Zero replied gratefully.

* * *

Reviews and everything always welcome. Check out my profile for the latest update regarding AIC and stuff around it. The next chapter is similar to this chapter in length, but chapter 39 is around 10 pages long, so hopefully that makes up for it. 'til next time. 


	38. Chapter 38:Preperations

Another shorter chapter. Shortly before posting this one I was reviewing the last chapter I uploaded. I accidentally wrote saying that 'I do now own .hack//', which is grammatically horrible for saying I own .hack//. I hope people realized it was a typo and I was trying to type 'I do not own'. It should have been updated, but in the event it isn't, I repeat that I do not own .hack//, the concept of "The World", or anything along those lines. I do however own these characters and this story, that's about it. Anyways, enough of my screw ups, enjoy.

* * *

"Unfortunately, if that's the situation we can't provide much support from here,"Azara replied to Code.

"We should be able to manage if you can just keep Twilight within the area. You've been informed of the Deletion Zone so it shouldn't take much to sever the connection of the area after we go through,"Code stated.

"I would, however, like to help prepare. It's in your hands but I should be able to help in some of the smaller aspects. Cloning their accounts for example. After I cut the connection it'll be impossible for any data to cross through, but there's a question that still bugs me,"Azara confessed.

"Continue?"

"It wouldn't be too difficult to just cut the connection and transfer the area to a CD or something, correct? Why couldn't we just do that?"

"I've considered that at a previous point. You've experienced the data corruption caused by Twilight, you should know what would happen. Even if you don't directly come into contact with the files for that area, Twilight within them, during the transfer it'd probably disrupt your computer. No telling what the result would be."

"So it was as I feared. Thank you for confirming my suspicions. I leave this matter in your hands, contact me should the need for my help arise,"Azara said before disconnecting this time.

"So what's the plan?"Kaiyen asked Code, after Code removed his headset.

"Well...there doesn't really seem to be much room for any plan, really. We know where Twilight is, we want to prevent her from retreating, and we need to defeat her. The only way to really stop her is within the game, so we have to attack."

"True, and as we've seen when raided the Deletion Zone, it is possible to defeat an AI."

"Also, we want access to the swords in order to get Jugatsu and Zero out into the real world. I'll have to do quite a bit of work to make them exist in the real world...I suppose however, I could technically use their past information and just update it...Hmm,"Code contemplated.

----------

"So this is really it,"Sakura said, laying on Ryo's bed, next to him.

It was relaxing. With everything that has happened, and with the final battle approaching, he would be able to relax a lot more. The two of them were laying on the bed, staring at the ceiling and nothing else.

"There has been a lot of sacrifices unfortunately,"Ryo responded after awhile.

"I'm glad I've been able to last long enough to be at the end with you,"Sakura stated, smiling.

"Yeah...your injuries weren't major luckily. And after this we can return back to our normal lives."

"With a few differences of course,"Sakura stated, grabbing Ryo's hand.

"Have we ever told the others about us?"

"I don't think so, now that I think about it."

"I'm sure they'll be surprised when they finally recover. It's probably the best 'Get Well' gift we could offer,"Ryo stated.

_Returning to normal...It's hard to believe it's been almost four months since I started playing "The World"...Who would've imagined all this would've happened. Even now I can recall that way back then I just pictured me, Dylan, and Suichi as people playing a popular online game. That kind of peaceful life really seems ideal after all of this, no matter how you look at it. This will probably remain as an important memory, but...only after I can go through a peaceful life..._

Ryo eyes had closed by this point and he drifted off to sleep. Sakura looked over, discovering him asleep.

"Of course he has to kill the mood he was trying to set,"Sakura complained, closing her eyes as well.

----------

Jugatsu dodged the monster's next slash and managed to finish him off with a final attack of his own.

"There's really nothing that'll help me train against, Twilight, but it's difficult to just sit around doing nothing,"Jugatsu said to himself.

After his revival he already understood things would probably lead to the climax of the event, but now that it was just a day away, he found himself restless and wanting to practice. It was disappointing, despite all the attacks that he had seen from Twilight, and everything he had learned, he had several ideas for new kinds of techniques he could use the bracelet for, all of them would go to waste on normal monsters though, and he wouldn't be able to get any results. Stat building was useless as well so he really didn't have any point in leveling.

"I suppose I'm about to used to my body as I'm going to be for awhile...this training really is kind of pointless...but I want something to do..."

"How about I spar with you for awhile?"a voice said suddenly.

"That's...Zero?"Jugatsu called to the voice.

Zero landed in front of Jugatsu with his weapons out and is usual cat-like grin across his face.

"We both have to be in top shape for the battle tomorrow. I say we fight until we can't stand anymore, not like there any monsters out there that'll give us a challenge anyways,"Zero suggested.

_I can understand where you're coming from, but everyone from the first incident is quite a few levels past me...actually if I recall they're all max level and most of them have improved even further through stat boosting items they come across, so I can still find challenge in monsters...Ah well...I suppose this would be more effective than monster anyways _Jugatsu thought, before accepting Zero's offer.

"Three, two, one, go,"Zero said, launching forwards as he began to say go.

Out of habit, Jugatsu's, by now weak and for the most part useless, daggers changed into his dual sword style. Zero only shot out one of his blades the first time which Jugatsu managed to knock away. He continued forward, until he noticed the chain react to Zero's arms movement. He glanced back and noticed the blade he knocked away swing towards him. Out of reaction, Jugatsu kicked himself in the air, flipping to the side and avoiding the chain. He was even surprised by how much his body was able to react, and how much battle memory remained within his body.

"Nice, but keep your guard up,"Zero said as he landed a slash across Jugatsu's face during his thoughts.

It was unexpected, but appreciated when Zero used a Healing Potion on him afterwards. With the cut across his face now gone he was back up and ready to continue. This time Jugatsu took the offensive, dodging both long-range blade attacks instead of deflecting them. He managed to get up to Zero before his blades could return to him which allowed him to get in an attack with each sword before healing the damage.

The two continued to spar, they quickly grew more energetic and excited during each bout to get in the first hit. It was probably a few hours before they began to decline, growing tired. Gradually the battle became grueling, both of them slowly losing more and more breath with each match, the movements growing more sluggish, and the time between matches growing. Both of them continued to push themselves, refusing to be the first person to stay down. In the end it ended up as a draw, when both were barely able to walk, let alone stand. Jugatsu managed to get in the final blow, both of the fighters dropping to the ground at the same time, their bodies weary and unresponsive.

"It's about time we rest anyways,"Jugatsu stated, face first in the ground, exhausted.

"It'd be sad if we showed up to the battle out of energy anyways...not to mention harmful to the everyone's abilties as a whole,"Zero agreed, sprawled out on the ground, staring upwards.

The cut left by Jugatsu, didn't really hurt that badly anyways. By that point they were both beyond their limits and there wasn't any force behind the attack.

"It was all luck,"Zero said, refusing to let Jugatsu win.

"Whatever you say, but unless you can get back up, I win,"Jugatsu responded, grinning.

"Tough talk for someone whose been in the head of a useless kid for months,"Zero protested.

"Whatever, just go to sleep,"Jugatsu ordered, half falling asleep himself.

----------

"Thanks for coming to meet me,"AnakinseZ said to Momiri and Venus.

"We're friends, you shouldn't have to thank us for coming out,"Venus replied.

"The reason I wanted to talk to you wasn't about Twilight...well not, directly. I appreciate the fact you trusted me enough and let me put up this organization. I also appreciate all the help I was able to get from the Elite Rogue Squad and the sub-leaders of October, but it was wrong of me to get them involved,"AnakinseZ stated.

"What's this about? With you in charge, October has been efficient in helping "The World" remain in order. If it wasn't for your group, there's no telling what state "The World" would be in,"Momiri responded.

"Even so, I think it's about time I stepped down from October. Thanks to me, the ERS project has been on hold with over half the team missing, plus October is hinging on disorganization with its leaders missing and me constantly preoccupied with other matters. It's not that I want October disbanded, I do however want to someone else to take charge,"AnakinseZ explained.

"Very well, if you wish. What will you do after Twilight is defeated?" Momiri asked.

"Not sure, but either way, the ground work has been laid, anyone should be able to run October, I'm not all that important anymore,"AnakinseZ answered.

A silence followed before Venus spoke at last. With tomorrow's event overshadowing everything else, the topic was expected to be either Twilight or the past incident. It was the second one.

"Do you think Jugatsu will end up doing it alone in the end? Like last time?"

"Unfortunately we can't assist with these characters,"Momiri replied.

"I think this time...everyone will have to work together. Twilight has all the powers of Dusk and Dawn, but even with the limits Dawn had put on herself and transfered to Twilight as a result, Twilight is still strong...too strong for anyone to take on alone. Jugatsu, even with the bracelet, will need help. But this time there are lot's of people willing to help,"AnakinseZ answered.

Another silenced followed.

"Well, we should probably get back to our duties...We'll be sure to grant your request,"Momiri said excusing herself and Venus.

The two of them warped away, leaving AnakinseZ alone in their dead-end spot.

"I say he'll need everyone...but I really wonder. And as for Coinchii..When I look back at him, I can't help but remember what we had to go through. We managed to stop the problem quickly so it didn't effect us much...but four months...he must have gone through so much by now,"AnakinseZ said to himself.

_That's a good one...stop the problem..we did nothing but delay it..._AnakinseZ thought, after finishing his statement.

He took a deep breath before logging off. Tomorrow was the last day, hopefully. With CC Corp and a legendary hacker in charge of the operation this time it would surely be finished this time, right?

----------

"Hulle Granz Cathedral, that's what this was known as in the game that first incorporated "The World". Everytime we seem to visit something new seems to happen,"Skyld said to himself, standing at the end of the walkway that led to the large cathedral.

_Maybe...Just maybe, this area will have something to say regarding this final battle... _Skyld thought.

That entire thought being the reason he entered this area. He shoved away the second thoughts as he began walking towards the gigantic door. Up to date, Skyld knew of two the of three predictions stated by the cathedral. The first one was predicted years ago, during Jugatsu's second visit to the area. The second was more recent, when Ryo started using Oblivion, Skyld stumbled upon it before it changed to the third one. The third one was the one that was still in place when Skyld entered it.

The statue was impossible to get used to. It was unsettling, the half demon-half child that stared at the door. Skyld found himself stepping to the side subconsciously to avoid it's gaze. The riddle from before was still there undisturbed. 'When a vessel cannot contain what it's holding it, then the contents will go to waste unless a new vessel is chosen. One can modify the vessel but it is up to the one who can modify the vessel to do so.' it read.

_Every prediction it makes is like a riddle, it's usually difficult to grasp what the riddle is about until its prediction has passed...so even if it does make a new prediction, will anything come of it? _Skyld asked himself as he approached the rail, blocking the statue from the rest of the open room.

Skyld gulped and took a deep breath. No telling what would happen. He hopped over the railing and placed a hand on the base of the statue, too unsettled to actually touch it directly. After a moment passed, nothing happened, however, so Skyld found himself touching the statue itself. Another moment passed and nothing happened. Skyld closed his eyes and prepared to remove his hand when there was a sudden light. The statue slowly began dissolving into the air. Skyld quickly drew his hand back and turned around. The pedestal that would usually hold the writing was blank as bits of light vanished into the air above it. The statue by this point was quickly dissipating into the air. By the time Skyld turned around an empty base stood alone, with an empty pedestal behind him.

"Everything is gone,"Skyld said aloud, climbing back over the railing,"What could it mean?"

He walked over the pedestal, taking a last look before walking towards the entrance. He thought he heard something so he turned around, but still found nothing but an empty cathedral full off broken benches, a blank pedestal, and the lack of a statue. He stepped outside of the cathedral and looked around at the empty lake bed the cathedral was in the middle of.

"I can only predict what is certain...create your own future,"Skyld repeated what he thought he heard. He took a last look at the cathedral and warped out.

----------

"Here's the list of who we have for the final confrontation,"Kaiyen said, handing Code a clip board with the following on it.

----------

Twilight Fight Warrior List

This list will include those who are no longer able to fight as well those who will be fighting in what has been determined as the 'Final Match'. The names of those participating in the Final Match shall be listed first. Those who are unable to fight will have an X before their number.

1)AnakinseZ

2)Coinchii

3)Jugatsu

4)Miryo

5)Orion

6)Skyld

7)Zero

X8)Ace

X9)AlphaWave

X10)Cuoka

X11)Demon

X12)Gyuni

X13)Hedrei

X14)Junhi

X15)Mohi

X16)Serene

X17)Shadow

X18)Shot

----------

"You want to fight as well?"Code asked, upon reading Orion on the list.

"I haven't really done that much that would be considered helpful in the long run, I want to at least participate in the last fight,"Kaiyen answered.

"Alright,"Code replied, flipping through the rest of the pages in the clipboard which contained information on each person on the list.

Kaiyen continued to stand there, awaiting Code's next order.

"Go train in preparation, you'll need to be in complete sync with your character, so practice already,"Code said, figuring Kaiyen was awaiting his order before doing what was obvious.

----------

"Hey, love birds, you might wanna get some food,"Data said, opening Ryo's door and waking him up.

"What time is it?"Ryo asked, sitting up.

"Well you have about thirty minutes before they stop serving dinner in the cafeteria,"Data replied, checking his watch.

"Minus breakfast I haven't really eaten anything, now that I think about it,"Ryo said, standing up and stretching.

"Might wanna wake Sakura up as well,"Data said walking off.

Ryo looked back and found Sakura still asleep on his bed. He wondered why it took him so long to realize that Sakura was cute in the way her innocence. Even when she acted less than innocent, there was always that sense of innocence in her. It was almost a shame for him to wake her up, but it would've been bad for everyone if she wasn't in good shape for tomorrow's battle.

Ryo shook the bed while calling for her the first time, but she didn't respond.

"She usually doesn't sleep this hard,"Ryo commented, getting on the bed and shaking her this time.

Sakura smacked his hand away and rolled over.

"Are you acting or something?"Ryo asked, as he made her sit-up only to find her still sleeping.

Ryo gave up and let her lay back down. After putting her under the covers he decided he would just pick up two dinners and keep hers for later. It couldn't hurt to be a nice guy. He stepped out into the hallway and began walking to the cafeteria. Despite how often he had been hearing it today, it still felt like a dream, the final fight and the end of everything.

"It'll be hard returning to school everyday, I kind of enjoyed this style of school, with the once a week test and homework only,"Ryo said to himself.

----------

Momiri appeared in familiar dead-end of Mac Anu, due to her location of living she was unable to work in the main building of CC Corp, but due to her position she had to attend this meeting between Azara and Code. Azara was already waiting in her old administration character who now stood, leaning against the stone wall, eyes closed. Momiri took a seat in the boat.

"I've decided on whose fighting, since you offered to clone the accounts of some. Where we originally had 18 people to fight whenever needed, due to the Quad C invasion of the Deletion Zone we were reduced quite a bit. At the moment we have Jugatsu, Coinchii, Skyld, AnakinseZ, Zero, Orion, and Miryo."

"Out of those people, the only accounts I could actually clone would be Skyld, Coinchii, Miryo, and AnakinseZ. Zero and Jugatsu are both players within a character and Orion is only permitted to exist until this battle finishes,"Azara responded.

"I've decided to send in everyone except Miryo. From all of the information we've been gathering about battles, wavemasters only work well as support and even then, the spells do little to nothing against AIs. Zero, Skyld, and AnakinseZ have developed decent fighting abilities naturally from this game. Coinchii has been in training under a special style of martial arts and sword training. Orion has already graduated from that training. Jugatsu has the bracelet and therefore has to take part, but even without the bracelet he'd probably end up going. From the data he seems to be a better fighter than Coinchii,"Code explained.

"Very well, I will make a clone account for Coinchii, Skyld, and AnakinseZ to use during the battle in order to preserve their original accounts,"Azara stated before logging out.

"Now, Momiri,"Code said suddenly.

"Yes?"Momiri replied, slightly startled.

"During this attack, we'll be fighting in an area that shouldn't exist within "The World","Code began, before being cut-off.

"I'm aware. You'll be going through the Deletion Zone to get into a map."

"Yes, because the computer doesn't recognize the area as existing in any server, or linked to any server, I feel relieved, but because it is, however, linked through the Deletion Zone, I believe there might be a possibility of escaping through that link. I was told by Jugatsu that during the last battle, Remial prepared a grid of some sort to block exit or entry to the map?"

"He did, but Jugatsu managed to warp everyone out using his bracelet, so it wasn't really that effective, which is why he had Remial disconnect the map,"Momiri explained.

"If he still happens to have the program somewhere, could I see it? I'd like to give it a shot and create a special barrier."

"I believe it's the same barrier being used in the towns now, but I can't say for sure, still I'll talk to him,"Momiri answered.

"Thank you, I'll give you a place to send it to, from there they'll send it to me,"Code explained, before stating where he wanted the data sent.

Momiri nodded and logged out.

"If we can get that program, I'm sure I can perfect that barrier, no offense to Remial," Code said to himself, taking off his headset.

"Sir, me and a few of the others have been curious, with this over, what will we be doing? Ever since you learned of that boy and about these AIs, we've been doing constant computer work,"someone from the data phase said, standing down the stairs next to Code's computer.

"Afterwards, you can return to your normal studies, but I'm sure you'll find it simple after doing well on this. I'm probably going to need some more people in the data phase after all of this,"Code said, most of which was him commenting to himself.

* * *

Well, expect the next chapter sooner than later. How soon, depends on when A) I can get around to it and B)When I feel like uploading the next chapter. And as of this upload, I'm a chapter and a half away from finishing AIC. So in other words, I have two chapters complete ahead of this, and as of this moment, I have a chapter half written out. So I'll see if I can get around to uploading a bit more often since more than likely I'll be finished with it soon. 


	39. Chapter 39:All or Nothing

Not much time has passed since I released chapter 38, but since the remaining chapters are shorter chapters I decided I might as well release the climax of the story and in doing so the last 'long' chapter of AIC. Not much to say really, enjoy.

* * *

Skyld and AnakinseZ relogged on, this time on their clone accounts. Coinchii was on his clone account from the start. Jugatsu, Zero, and Orion stood within the building that hosted a portal to the Deletion Zone. After today the portal wouldn't exist. It wouldn't be needed really, however, despite the few amount of times it had been used, it did provide some convinience. Sakura remained in the real world against her will and observed as the remaining six of 18 eighteen fighters entered the portal to the Deletion Zone.

Earlier Code had prepared everything, so now he began inputting data in order to teleport their characters to the battlefield. The renamed area appeared suddenly as the surroundings of the Deletion Zone melted away from their vision. The place they were standing at the moment was on the top of a plateau, similar to a mountain-type field, but looking around, they could see the rest of the battlefield. It was as if they were on a giant floating island, separated by sections. Aside from the rocky mountain they now stood upon, a forest-type field was seen at the base of the mountain to one side. A desert-type field laid on the opposite side. The third side consisted of a winter-styled field, and opposite of the winter-styled field was a regular grassy field. Just beyond the forest-type field was a large building.

"So this what Twilight originally intended to use as a field,"Orion stated, impressed.

Each section was easily larger than a normal size field and the mountain surpassed the tallest mountain in any mountain-type field, not the normal mountains really qualified as such in the first place.

"Zero, the building seems like a rather obvious place, but is Twilight there or is that just like a decoy?"AnakinseZ asked.

"This is the first time I've actually been here so I don't know exactly where in the field Twilight is,"Zero stated.

"Let's check it out then,"Jugatsu said motioning for everyone to move closer.

Jugatsu's bracelet began to glow with it's trademark golden light. A large dome of light soon appeared from the bracelet engulfing the party, when it disappeared they were gone. Teleportation was easily better than traveling by foot, even-more-so when they wanted to quickly get through the battle. Even from close up it was hard to tell what the building was supposed to be, it didn't look like any kind of house or mansion, nor did it resemble a business place. It looked like misshapen military building if anything.

"Twilight!"Jugatsu shouted, seeing if she would come out before they went in.

Nothing happened after a minute or two of waiting, Skyld stepped forward and opened the door. The hallway was dark at first, but after the door opened to a certain point the lights kicked on automatically. There was a pause and everyone slowly began entering. Everyone kept their hands on their weapons and prepared in case Twilight came out. At the end of the hallway it branched off. A pathway to the left and another to the right.

"Are we going to split up?"Coinchii asked, looking at the others.

"No. We don't know this place, if we split up we'd have no way of finding each other again,"Jugatsu stated.

"Let's stick to the right wall as well, if we follow the wall we can get out with little to no trouble,"Skyld suggested.

Everyone agreed and they continued forward. From here the hallway was short, with an open doorway at the end. They stepped through it and found themselves in what looked like a warehouse. The building was oddly shaped, mainly because it was a large room with the hallways leading into the room. The room was two stories. A catwalk hugged it's way along the second floor. The first floor consisted of five different hallway entrances and two indents on the floor. By the shapes, it was obvious they were for the Twilight Swords.

"Is this where Twilight planned on activating the portal to the real world?"AnakinseZ thought aloud.

"Get out!"they suddenly heard Twilight shout. Twilight appeared in a flash of white light and unleashed a large beam that hit Zero sending him through the wall.

"Zero!"Jugatsu shouted, running back to the newly created hole that lead to a hallway.

Zero pushed some rubble off and his weapons disappeared within their holders.

"I managed to block it, don't w-"Zero began before suddenly stopping.

In a second Zero broke through the other wall, being pushed by Twilight's psychic abilities.

"Twilight!"Skyld shouted, charging forward.

Skyld was stopped mid-charge and thrown through the hole, hitting a tree from the forest area. AnakinseZ and Coinchii were both thrown out afterwards, Jugatsu jumped out of his own will. If the room proved to have some special use with regards to using the Twilight Swords, then Jugatsu didn't want to damage it either.

Once outside, Jugatsu transformed his daggers into his swords and turned around, waiting for Twilight to come out. Instead however, Twilight teleported outside, above the six of them, and released a large ball of energy, falling towards them. With the exception of Jugatsu the others fled to escape the blast.

_I have to test this_ Jugatsu thought as he ran under it and held his wrist up. His bracelet began to glow and a whirlwind of golden energy began to form within his palm which laid open as if it intended to catch Twilight's attack. It all happened quickly, but it seemed as if everything slowed down, as if time was on Jugatsu's side. A ball of golden energy, the size of Jugatsu's palm, appeared and shot upwards, stealing the whirlwind with it. It collided with Twilight's much larger energy ball, however, instead of an explosion, the wind surrounding Jugatsu's energy ball shot upwards, reversing the direction of Twilight's attack.

"It worked,"Jugatsu replied, somewhat surprised.

"Watch out!"someone shouted suddenly.

After Twilight's attack, due to Jugatsu running beneath it, he was unable to see Twilight teleport behind him. Twilight's fist emerged from her sleeve with white energy surging through-out it. Jugatsu picked up his right-handed sword and attempted to turn around, but Twilight required a lot less time with her movement. The punch made contact with Jugatsu's back and the resulting explosion sent him flying. Bouncing off of two trees before finally stopping as he hit the third one.

"Are you okay?"Skyld asked from somewhere.

"Yeah,"Jugatsu grunted, sitting up.

"It isn't going to work,"Twilight stated as Coinchii came down with his sword.

During her attack on Jugatsu, Coinchii attempted to get out and land an easy hit, but it failed when she turned around pushed a palm-sized ball of energy into Coinchii's gut. Coinchii took two steps back and grabbed his stomach. Another ball of energy appeared in Twilight's hand, but this time it was thrown. Coinchii managed to duck in time to dodge it. The dust and dirt from the explosion scattered amongst the trees.

AnakinseZ took this chance to attempt Coinchii's stratagy and get in an attack on the pre-occupied Twilight. Twilight merely used her psychic abilities and lifted AnakinseZ into the air without even looking at him. Zero's chain was heard from within the trees suddenly and was on target for Twilight, but stopped just short, thanks to Twilight's powers. Coinchii charged forward but was quickly stopped when AnakinseZ was tossed into him.

Twilight turned towards Zero's blade which remained tense in the air. Jugatsu was going to attempt an energy ball attack, but Skyld advised against it. If using special techniques drained Twilight's energy it would probably do the same to Jugatsu.

"Even now we're not doing well, but if we can just hold out until Twilight grows tired we can probably defeat her then,"Skyld said to Jugatsu, before charging out of their hiding place.

Zero now emerged from the woods, being pulled in by Twilight's powers via his chain. Once close Twilight floated a bit higher and prepared an energy ball the size of Zero.

"I have you,"Zero shouted suddenly launching his other blade upwards.

Twilight had a puzzled look on her face at first, but quickly realized his target was the energy ball. Twilight's psychic powers quickly stopped the chain. With that threat out of the way Twilight, grinning confidently, looked down at Zero. Zero too was grinning confidently. There was a large explosion from the energy ball when Zero's first blade made contact Twilight's energy ball. The blast was powerful enough to launch her towards the ground where she bounced and rolled over before quickly picking herself up.

Skyld stood within the trees just outside the building. The small cuts and marks that now covered Twilight were beginning to heal with her power. Even if this did help her recover physically it would drain her energy. Skyld was determined to make this an endurance match that Twilight would lose. Skyld looked even further upwards when he saw a shadow on Twilight.

Jugatsu tossed one of swords aside and held the handle of the other with both hands, flying downwards towards Twilight who still hadn't noticed him. Twilight noticed Zero's expression of surprise, however, which gave away where Jugatsu was. It was a long time ago when they fought, but such an obnoxious move was hard to forget. Twilight floated to the side, getting out of Jugatsu's way, but Jugatsu merely began to spin. He reached Twilight's level at a fast speed, but was spinning fast enough and managed to leave a decent wound on Twilight's shoulder, which, ran partially down her arm. Blood began to soak the the dress but the wound was quickly healed thanks to her powers. Jugatsu teleported a few feet away just above the ground to prevent himself from being injured too badly from the fall.

"It's this early in the battle and Twilight is already showing signs of weakening, how pathetic,"Jugatsu taunted.

It was true, Twilight now had a slash in her gown from Jugatsu's attack and the blood that soaked into the gown was still visible. Although the blood and gown had similar colors, the blood hid the erie light that seemed to radiate from the gown. If anyone could anger Twilight, Jugatsu would be able to. Twilight didn't respond verbally, but by the look of her face, it was obvious Jugatsu's taunt angered Twilight. Twilight's body suddenly began to turn white and gradually turned into energy.

"What's going on?"Skyld asked, not expecting someone to have an answer.

The light continued to keep Twilight's shape, but now with the exception of where Twilight's eyes would be, the white energy began to turn red. In the blink of an eye the energy Twilight flew down, swinging her body around in order to kick Skyld away. Her feet remained hidden beneath the gown as always, but Skyld flew through the forest at an impressive speed. If he nicked any trees as he flew, it was hard to tell as he seemed to go straight through until he hit a tree which snapped.

"I'll finish the others last,"Twilight said, no visible mouth on her energy form.

Twilight pointed her hand at the others and they began to vanish within red light, until Jugatsu was the only left with her. Skyld wasn't visible, and Jugatsu couldn't tell what shape he was in, so he assumed he would have to fight alone. Using his bracelet, Jugatsu's second sword returned to him just in time for Jugatsu to get hit by Twilight who was moving rediculously fast. Jugatsu slid backwards on the ground a few feet before the pressure lifted him up and sent him flying into a tree.

Jugatsu got up on his knee and prepared to stand up, but a ball of energy from Twilight damaged him and sent him even further back, where he bounced to the side after hitting a tree during his fight.

"This is seriously lame,"Jugatsu said to himself.

He dropped his weapons from when he was hit by the energy ball, but even without them in the way it was already getting more and more difficult to get up after each attack. The energy Twilight appeared in front of Jugatsu, but Twilight was back to normal. She had to use a tree to stand up, however, meaning her energy form consumed a lot of energy. She wasn't out of energy though, another energy ball appeared and was slammed on top of Jugatsu. Jugatsu held in the scream of pain. He took pride in the fact that through-out all of his battles he never gave his opponent the joy of hearing him scream.

Twilight rocked back and forth as she approached Jugatsu to speak."Thanks to you and your friends, I had to use my energy transformation, but you're the only one that knows it consumes this much energy. As long as the others don't know then they'll be afraid which is all I need to finish them off,"Twilight said.

Twilight used her psychic abilities to bring Jugatsu's arm from beneath his cloak. The bracelet was so close, her goal would finally be complete, she just needed to access it's powers by linking her energy with it. With Jugatsu unable to move, he wouldn't be able to reject her access to his powers. Twilight raised her hand towards the bracelet.

"Stop!"Skyld shouted, running at Twilight.

"You...can still fight,"Jugatsu said, turning his head to see Skyld.

Twilight floated upwards to avoid his close range attack, but in response Skyld threw his sword, tip first at Twilight. Another futile attempt as Twilight grabbed the sword with her psychic powers and sent it flying else where.

"Here,"Jugatsu managed to say.

Jugatsu's bracelet began to faintly glow and his swords appeared by his hand. Skyld nodded and grabbed one, he was surprised at how light weight it was, but considering it was still considered a dagger by the system, it made sense. Even though Skyld wasn't trapped within "The World", and was still unable to feel things or smell things, depending on how much the weapon slowed down a swing he was able to guess it's weight. His normal sword didn't have much resistance, but the lack of resistance from Jugatsu's sword was unbelievable. It almost felt as if he could swing faster while holding Jugatsu's sword.

"If you keep using long-range attacks you'll run out of energy and I overheard your conversation. You're already tired because of your energy form. The only way you can fight me is in close range combat, which you know I can beat you in,"Skyld said, getting in position.

Twilight growled and vanished in a flash of light.

"Dammit, she ran away,"Skyld said.

"Help me sit up, I'll feel better after a moment, I'm sure,"Jugatsu said.

Skyld ran over and helped him up. Afterwards, Skyld took Jugatsu's second weapon put it in his own sheath, while still holding the first one.

"I have to admit, you look good with my weapon. It fits perfectly with your appearance,"Jugatsu said half jokingly to Skyld.

Skyld hit him upside his head.

"Nows not the time for that, focus on resting so we can go after Twilight."

"Fine,"Jugatsu replied, turning his head to look at Skyld from the corner of his eyes.

----------

"Why is this field so big?"Coinchii complained as he ran through the grass field.

When Twilight teleported them, they ended up in the desert, probably on the completely opposite side of the battlefield. Zero was already way ahead of the other three. He vanished from site shortly after all of them began sprinting. Orion was ahead of AnakinseZ and Coinchii, but he was still in sight.

"Just keep running, Skyld and Jugatsu are fighting Twilight alone right now, that's if Skyld recovered from that attack,"AnakinseZ stated.

Coinchii winced just remembering the attack. Just watching him get hit that hard was painful for Coinchii, he didn't want to have to endure it.

----------

"I almost had him, if only I didn't knock away that other damn player he would've been teleported too,"Twilight said to herself.

Zero stopped, hearing the voice. Thanks to his high stats and the fact he lived as his character Zero was able to run fast without real life physical limitations restricting him. He took advantage of that and ran ahead going around the lower side of the mountain, since he was also able to jump a good hight to get over things. Zero listened again and heard what sounded like someone muttering.

_That was definately Twilight's voice, then Twilight must be around here...The others can find out what happened to Jugatsu and Skyld _Zero thought, looking around for a source of the noise. Zero jumped on top of a near by boulder and glanced around. He jumped over to another path that lead up the mountain and followed it. The muttering grew slightly louder. Zero was almost able to make out what the muttering was saying when he entered a passage that had rock on both sides. A small amount of sunlight shone into the path, enough to see what was just ahead of Zero.

He paused when he heard yet another noise. A ball of energy appeared from farther down and hit Zero. He managed to hold his ground, but Twilight used energy balls way too much for Zero's taste. Zero shot his blade into the mountains above. Then pulled himself up some. As predicted, another ball of energy came through shortly afterwards.

"So it is you, Twilight,"Zero shouted, swinging further down the path before running.

Both blades out, Zero ran full speed. Twilight soon came into view, trying to attack with yet another energy ball. Zero managed to land a slash across Twilight's stomach, but the follow up attack missed when she floated upwards. Her wounds began to heal once again. Zero shot his dagger up, clearly missing Twilight, so she didn't bother with it. When it lodged itself into the rock above, he began to pull himself up. Twilight escaped the path through the top, Zero following shortly afterwards.

"So what are you doing here? I would think if you beat Jugatsu that you wouldn't have a need to hunt us down, so did Jugatsu get the upper hand and you retreat?"Zero asked.

"You have no where to dodge to,"Twilight responded.

Twilight still had signs of fatigue but she seemed to have recovered fairly well in the short amount of time since her escape. Her hands appeared both with their own ball of energy. Twilight threw the first one upwards in an arc and threw the seconds directly at Zero. There was a dirt cloud as the energy ball between them suddenly exploded. The smoke moved to the side allowing Zero's blade to shoot forward, targeting Twilight. Although Zero couldn't see Twilight, the fact his blade stopped, had him guessing he hit her. It was odd, however, that it wasn't returning to him. He realized what was wrong when he saw the smoke clear, letting a giant energy ball pass through. With nowhere to go and no room to attack it with his other blade the energy ball made direct contact. The explosion was large, blowing Zero clear off the ledge he was previously standing on. Several chunks of rock followed him down the mountain as well.

Twilight was panting. The battle itself wasn't too exhausting, but she however needed to recover more before anyone else stumbled upon her. She began away in case anyone noticed the explosion, it was rather difficult to miss.

----------

"What do you think that was?"Coinchii asked, still running.

The group of three had passed the mountain and the forest was just in sight, now, but with the large explosion suddenly appearing on the side of the mountain, it left the three of them a little more than curious.

"If there was an explosion, it means there was a battle,"Orion said, falling back to AnakinseZ and Coinchii who had been behind him the entire time.

"So what should we do? I find it unlikely that Twilight teleported Skyld and Jugatsu there to fight them somewhere else,"AnakinseZ stated.

"I agree, Zero has been gone for awhile, he could've been attacked. Why he would be at the mountain, I don't know, but it's a possibility,"Orion said.

"Coinchii go check whether or not Skyld and Jugatsu are still in the woods. Orion and I will check the mountain,"AnakinseZ said.

"Why do I have to be left out of the fighting?"Coinchii asked, stopping suddenly.

"You're being left out of this fight because you'll have better odds with Skyld and Jugatsu. You were there at the first match, if Twilight can take on that many of us, do you really think you would have better odds with me and Orion than with Jugatsu and Skyld?"AnakinseZ replied stopping as well.

"Hey you make it sound as if we have no chance,"Orion said, confidently.

"But I-"Coinchii began, before begin cut-off.

"Go,"AnakinseZ ordered, running off.

Orion looked at Coinchii briefly before catching up to AnakinseZ

"Fine!"Coinchii shouted.

He was angry at AnakinseZ for leaving him behind, but he did have a point. Coinchii had no choice at the moment, he could always follow them, but they probably wouldn't wait up for him even if they knew he was coming. Coinchii sighed. With the exception of Jugatsu this fight really didn't belong to anyone aside from Coinchii, so why everyone else was giving him orders to avoid to Twilight, he didn't know. He gave up thinking and continued running towards the woods. Jugatsu would be able to teleport to the others anyways, providing he already hadn't done so. In that case, he would be running towards nothing. The situation was really beginning to aggravate him.

----------

"That explosion, it probably came from the mountain,"Skyld guessed, based on where the sound originated from.

"I still have to rest a little before I'll be able to fight all out again, but I should be able to defend myself. You go check it out, it might be the others,"Jugatsu said, still sitting against a tree.

"If Twilight appears and attacks teleport to the top of the mountain and just create giant light. Afterwards go to where the explosion took place. I, and whoever else I meet, will go there immediantly,"Skyld said, standing up.

"Right, right,"Jugatsu said in a relaxed way as if it wasn't a big deal having Twilight attack.

Skyld nodded and ran off.

"As I am right now, I can move around, but I'm not rested enough to go into battle,"Jugatsu said to himself, looking up at the sky. It was covered in a red grid, kind of like the last time.

_I wonder if I can break through this one as well. If another worst-case scenario happens. _Jugatsu thought. Just as the thought crossed his mind a red aura temporarily covered the floating island.

"What was that?"Jugatsu asked aloud, surprised.

A short while passed and nothing else happened. Jugatsu was still curious, but whatever it was it didn't seem like it would be anything harmful. If it was indeed a protection grid, blocking anyone from leaving or entering, then the only conclusion Jugatsu could come to is that Twilight tried to warp away, but this grid actually worked.

Jugatsu took a deep breath. With nothing else to do, he figured he might as well see how rested his body was. He managed to stand up easily enough was able to perform basic maneuvers without any real problems. He felt fine as far as his energy went as well. Jugatsu looked around for his swords, he couldn't find them anywhere in the area and finally realized Skyld still had them. _I can do anything I can imagine thanks to the bracelet, those were Twilight's words. _Jugatsu thought to himself.

The bracelet began to light up the area as Jugatsu worked on an idea had just come up with. He closed his eyes in order to improve his focus, held his right arm with his left hand, and held his right hand towards the air in front him. Slowly the image in his mind began to physically manifest. At first it's basic shape was created from an unknown material. Color soon began to cover the blades. Jugatsu opened his eyes and put the final touches on the blades.

He managed to create a new weapon that the system would actually recognize, he was impressed with himself. He equipped the weapons through thought as he picked them up and checked them out closer. Both of the swords had the same look with the exception of the handle colors. Neither of the swords had a guard so the handles just fused into the blades, both of which were an absolute black that seemed as if they absorbed the light from the surrounding area. This resulted in a dark glow from around the blades. The blades themselves curved upwards slightly. They were roughly the same length as his previous swords, but these were even lighter in Jugatsu's opinion. The handles were a basic bandage covered handle with a small golden cap for the pommel. One sword had golden bandages, the other one had red bandages. Jugatsu went further with his new weapons by even adding a name and stats, not that either would matter in this fight.

"Jugatsu, so you're here,"Coinchii said, appearing out of nowhere suddenly.

"Coinchii, weren't you with the others?"Jugatsu asked.

"AnakinseZ and Orion went to check out the explosion at the mountain, they had me continue this way to see if you and Skyld wer-...Where is Skyld?"Coinchii asked, just realizing Skyld was missing.

"He went to investigate as well, I want to rest a bit more before going to battle again."

"Where'd you get those swords?"

"They're called Solar Night. It's an impossible situation, being nighttime while the sun is out, but we're in an impossible situation, right?"Jugatsu asked cheerfully.

"I can't believe this guy was in my head,"Coinchii commented.

"Whatever, anyways, let's go. I feel up to it, I can teleport us directly to the mountain. If you can tell me where the explosion occured I can warp us directly there,"Jugatsu stated, serious once again.

The two of them disappeared in orb of golden light.

----------

"Are you sure it was right to leave Zero? I know he told us to go after Twilight, but still,"AnakinseZ stated, feeling guilty about leaving him there.

"Even if he was injured, he should be able to manage, as long as he's in "The World", whether he feels the pain or not, he doesn't have a physical body so his death can only come from running out of hit points,"Orion reasoned.

"I suppose that makes sense,"AnakinseZ agreed, not feeling that much better.

The two continued to climb higher. One of the few things Zero was able to say included what happened what Twilight did as he fell. While falling, it looked like Twilight was floating higher. He wasn't positive if it was him going down or not, but for to Twilight sit there seemed kind of illogical. The explosion occured just below the half way point on the mountain. At the moment, AnakinseZ and Orion were almost two thirds up.

"Is that,"Orion started to say, before stopping.

"What?"AnakinseZ asked, unable to see anything from his location below Orion.

"Twilight!"Orion shouted, half jumping up as he climbed. Twilight seemed to finally realize those two were there and immediantly began to teleport. Orion managed to catch up quickly and grabbed on to the bottom of Twilight's robe at the last second, causing him to vanish as well.

"Orion!"AnakinseZ shouted from 20 or so feet below.

----------

Orion quickly jumped back after the warp. Twilight looked angry that her escape was futile, both of her hands came from beneath their sleeves and her wrists were placed together, both palms facing Orion. Orion began running to the side as soon as a ball of energy formed in her hand, but Twilight merely turned and kept her aim on Orion. With no other choice, Orion charged forwards, he would have to attack Twilight before she could launch that energy. As soon as he started forward, a beam shot out from the energy ball. Orion slid to a stop and attempted to block, but it cost him his spear and his left arm. Still it was better than being in a coma with severe injuries.

"Lucky dodge, but you won't be able to do it again,"Twilight said, still facing Orion, the beam now gone.

Smoke was rising from Orion's arm where his character was hit. The pain was horrible, but it wasn't as bad as some of the accidents he had when training under Sensei Byaku. Another dodge would be impossible, Twilight was right. Without any weapon he wouldn't be able to hold back the beam for the second...no half a second needed to dodge. If he didn't have his spear at that moment he probably would've lost a good part of his torso along with his left arm.

"I guess AnakinseZ was right, we didn't really have much of a chance, it seems,"Orion said, resigning to his fate.

Twilight suddenly unleashed a ball of energy towards Orion. At the last second Orion swung his useless left arm in from and blocked as much of his body as he could with his right. The explosion sent him flying back, sliding back five or six feet in the snow.

_That hurt more than I thought it would. If I really tried I could probably get back up...the best thing to do now would be to play dead. This makes me feel like such a coward _Orion thought to himself. The pain was now even more severe in his left arm and most of his body now a slight bit of pain. Even this was still better than severe injuries along with the joy of being in a coma. All he had to was lay down and hope the others could do something.

"I should probably check on 'him',"Twilight mentioned briefly before warping away.

_Whose him? Was it that she was curious about AnakinseZ who was behind him when they teleported at the mountain? Or maybe she was referring to Jugatsu._ Orion wondered. He actually hoped it was Jugatsu she was referring to. If he and AnakinseZ were right, Skyld would be with Jugatsu, and if Coinchii met up with them, it would mean three against one. Otherwise it would be AnakinseZ against Twilight which would have an obvious outcome.

----------  
Coinchii and Jugatsu stood, staring at the crater left in the mountain side. It would've been at least 10 feet in diameter if it was a complete circle. If anyone was hit by that, it would've been painful, not even counting the explosion that would probably blow the person off the cliff. Jugatsu looked around, finding no trace of anyone near by. It wasn't until Coinchii was hit by something falling did Jugatsu look up to find AnakinseZ.

When AnakinseZ reached Coinchii and Jugatsu, he told them what had happened after leaving Coinchii. Jugatsu decided to share what happened after they were teleported away. With both parties informed, they joined together and the reunited three began to climb down in hopes of finding Skyld while heading towards Zero.

"So, do you think Orion is going to end up like Zero?"Coinchii asked, nervous to say it.

"Honestly...he definately will unless something happens to save him, since we have no idea where he is, though and I doubt Twilight would teleport between the mountain and where we were,"Jugatsu answered, honestly.

"In any case we should hurry to Zero,"AnakinseZ interrupted, slowly progressing downwards.

----------

"Are you sure you're going to fight her, knowing what happened to me?"Zero asked, sitting against one of the boulders that joined him in his drop.

Some dried blood was still on his mouth, he had marks all over him from the fall and dirt. It was easy to tell just by looking at Zero that he wasn't going to be able move any time soon. Skyld stumbled across Zero while heading towards the mountain, he was informed as to what happened while he assisted Zero, but shortly after meeting up with Zero, Twilight appeared.

"With you out of the way, I'll only have two left to defeat, then I can go all out against 'him' and take the powers of his bracelet,"Twilight responded, floating in front of Skyld who had Zero behind him.

Skyld put his other hand on Jugatsu's second sword, to verify he could get to it easily enough before returning to the sword he used the first time. Even if he had the ability to pick up the second sword and use against Twilight, not that there was anything stopping him, he was a blade master, meaning he always used one sword. If he used a second sword it would probably just get in the way.

"It's nice to have a back-up, though,"Skyld said under his breath, before charging forward.

Twilight floated backwards to avoid Skyld's first attack, but Skyld was relentless and followed it up with almost little to no gap between slashes. Twilight attempted to summon energy for an energy ball, but due to the constant dodging she lost focus shortly after attempting, and the energy vanished in the air. Realizing it would be useless to attack like this, she made use of her psychic powers, freezing Skyld. Skyld cursed under his breath. Such a lame way to get defeated, unable to do anything, but not being injured. Twilight's hand appeared once again from her sleeve, this time it was above her head, while centered above her palm. The amount of energy gathering was impressive. Skyld could've easily fit inside the ball and would still have had plenty of room to move around in. If he got hit by that it would leave less than an injured player, and more than a 10 foot crater.

Suddenly for some odd reason there was a large explosion. The ground stirred up by the blast created a giant smoke screen. Skyld felt the psychic grip loosen and he was able to move again, but what happened, he couldn't tell. He couldn't see anything in all this dirt. He tried slashing it away, but there was too much and the slashing didn't seem to make any difference.

"There was way too reckless,"he suddenly heard someone shout.

If his ears weren't mistaking him, it was AnakinseZ.

"I had to help Skyld, besides I didn't roll down that far,"another voice replied, it sounded like Jugatsu's once again familiar voice.

"You jumped off the side of the mountain and fell at least 50 feet before rolling on solid rock to the ground!"

"Don't worry about it, I feel fine. Besides, my adrenaline is rushing, I can't wait for this fight."

The dirt was finally starting to clear, but Skyld still couldn't make anything aside from varying shades of light.

"You two are crazy,"another voice said, this one being Coinchii.

"You guys ready?"Jugatsu asked afterwards.

"Yeah,"the other two replied, the sound of weapons being drawn accompanying their voices.

"Hurry before Twilight tries to escape!"Skyld shouted suddenly, once he was able to make out his surroundings.

"Don't worry,"Jugatsu said.

The light from his bracelet was able to pierce through the remaining smoke. Even from Skyld's position it still had a golden shine to it.

"What's this? I can't teleport?"Twilight suddenly said, the smoke now completely vanished.

She was covered in a golden outline.

"By sacrificing my ability to teleport I made her unable to teleport. She said I can do whatever I please with the help of this bracelet, she was right,"Jugatsu said grinning.

He was the first charge forward, straight past Skyld who was still regaining his senses after being lost in the dust cloud. Aside from the golden outlining that blocked her ability to teleport, she also he a new appearance of change of various marks and injuries from being so close to the energy ball when Jugatsu's energy ball hit it, blowing it up.

"Curse you!"Twilight shouted, waving her hand and creating several energy balls at once in mid-air.

Jugatsu didn't even flinch. At once she sent all the energy balls. Only two were even close to Jugatsu, but he dodged one and slashed through the second one. He quickly made it up to Twilight, leaping upwards and coming just short of making contact. Twilight completely ignored him and flew further up, unleashing attack after attack on Skyld who was slowly being worn out from blocking and dodging, unable to do anything else. Jugatsu created an energy ball of his own and sent it towards Twilight, but she merely floated out of the way. Jugatsu tried creating multiple at once, but it took a lot of concentration and without training he wouldn't be able to create as many as Twilight did. Training wasn't something he would be able to do anyways. At most Jugatsu could create two energy balls at once. Twilight had no problem dodging only two.

"Stop, The more Twilight attacks, the more worn out she'll be, if you waste attacks on her you'll be worn out as well,"Skyld said, between dodging and blocking.

"We have to just stand here?"Coinchii asked, feeling completely useless.

"The only people who can attack long range are Jugatsu and Zero. Jugatsu has to save his energy and Zero can't move,"AnakinseZ, replied.

"Unless...Someone come over here,"Zero said suddenly.

AnakinseZ and Coinchii ran over.

"I can't move, but I don't need energy to use my long range attack, if I just think it, it shoots out and returns. Someone else just needs to aim it,"Zero said, attempting grinning despite how injured he was.

AnakinseZ nodded and aimed at Twilight. Once in target, Zero shot his blade at Twilight. Unfortunately, it ended just like all his past attempted. Despite Twilight's focus on wearing down Skyld, she used her psychic powers to grab his blade. Instead of holding it like usual, this time she used it as her weapon. The weapon turned downwards, while Twilight continued to launch attack after attack to keep him occupied, and managed to pierce Skyld in the back. His Jugatsu brand weapon fell as he took three attacks blowing him away and onto the ground. Zero quickly pulled his weapon once he had the opportunity.

The pain Skyld felt was unlike anything he had previously encountered, a normal attack like that would be lethal, or in the least paralyze him if he managed to survive, but due to the fact it was in game, he was able to move while still still feeling such an immense pain through his lower back. The three following blasts from Twilight didn't even register as Skyld lie on the ground, unable to even make a noise.

"No!"AnakinseZ shouted, running towards his long time friend who was just taken out so mercilessly.

"Watch out!"Jugatsu shouted.

He was too late. A large ball of energy collided with him, knocking him backwards, while still sliding forwards. There was another attack, but Jugatsu ignored their earlier advice and used an energy ball of his own to destroy Twilight's before it made contact with AnakinseZ. In response, Twilight sent two balls the first one successfully distracted Jugatsu while the second one hit AnakinseZ. AnakinseZ screamed in pain, and was breathing heavily. He showed no signs of getting up this time.

"I'm so useless,"Coinchii said, grabbing the side of his head, falling to his knees horrified.

Twilight began laughing while turning towards Jugatsu.

"With everyone else out of the way, I'll have nothing preventing me from getting access to your bracelet,"Twilight said, grinning.

"You still have to get through me again,"Jugatsu replied.

"Thanks to this little trick you used on me to prevent me from escaping, you gave me an idea of my own,"Twilight said.

Jugatsu suddenly felt her psychic grip crawl over him, preventing him from moving. By instinct, Jugatsu began to access the powers of the bracelet to counter the grip, but he couldn't feel the power once Twilight suddenly grabbed his arm just before the bracelet.

"If I transfer power through my hand, I can cancel anything power you have over this hand, meaning the bracelet which is on your wrist is useless. All I have to do is maintain the connection and keep my psychic grip on you and you won't be able to do a thing."

Twilight's other hand came out from beneath her sleeve and grabbed the bracelet. The light began to shine, this time Twilight glowed golden as well. Not just a golden outline, which was now nullified, but her entire image was hidden behind the golden glow. Jugatsu's eyes widened when he felt the hand that gripped his arm change. The hand grew larger and the grip was stronger. The golden glow began to fade, revealing not Twilight, but Dusk, the last Jugatsu remember seeing Dusk. The child behind the devil's glow.

"I see that look,"he said, his voice normal as well,"I'm not the same. This time I have several times the amount of power, plus you're not fighting me while I'm injured, I've used the power of your bracelet to completely recover myself. What are you going to do now?"

The psychic grip was suddenly released as Dusk quickly punched Jugatsu with his right, sending him sprawled on the ground. Within all this misfortune and horrible chain of events, Jugatsu found a streak of irony that made him chuckle. After accomplishing what he wanted to do, regain his former body, completely recovering, and have unrestricted access to all of his powers, the first thing he did was punch Jugatsu.

"What's so funny?"Dusk asked, aggitated by how Jugatsu could chuckle after he just made things worse for Jugatsu and his friends.

"It'd be pitiful if your true goal was just to learn how to punch,"Jugatsu said, standing up and using the bracelet to call both of his swords to his hands.

"You got some guts. What was it you said to me way back then? Oh yeah. I'll enjoy tearing you limb from limb,"Dusk said, pulling out both of the Twilight Swords and unleashing a shockwave from each one while pulling them from his back.

Jugatsu grinned and slashed through both, effortlessly. These weren't weapons that were enhanced by the bracelet, these swords came from the combination of the bracelet's powers and Jugatsu's will. Their power, Jugatsu believed, rivaled the strength of the Twilight Swords. He wasn't afraid. The Twilight Swords only got in Dusk's way before, so he wouldn't be afraid of them this time.

Just as they began to get serious Coinchii was suddenly screaming. Both of them refused to take their eyes off each other, but were too curious about the screaming to move. The screaming slowly turned into heavy panting. Both Dusk and Jugatsu jumped back and quickly turned towards, Coinchii only to find him gone.

"Where'd he go?"Jugatsu asked at the same time Dusk said,"That boy vanished."

"What...happened...to me,"they heard Coinchii faintly ask. They both looked up and saw Coinchii's character.

"That appearance,"Jugatsu said suddenly, finding it reminiscent of the cathedral in a way.

Coinchii's skin color was now stone gray, a darkness filled his eyes. A horn grew from his head, pointing straight out. His clothes had also changed in appearance. He wore a tunic with the stained glass from the cathedral on the front. His pants were the same color as the large dried out lake bed that surrounded the cathedral, and his sword now looked liked it was a piece of one of the broken benches from with in it.

"This feeling...Could be..Hulle Granz Cathedral,"Jugatsu said aloud.

_That cathedral was always weird, could it be that the reason I was within Ryo was because the cathedral decided it? Perhaps the cathedral was more than just an odd area. It's possible that the cathedral put me in Ryo just so I could recover to fight Twilight. It would've had to sense Twilight's return then and perhaps it sensed something special within Ryo. _Jugatsu began to think.

A voice soon arrived that seemed to have come from Coinchii who was now floating in the air, but the voice was completely different and the new Coinchii's mouth wasn't moving as it spoke.

"No longer can I just observe. Time has come for me take part in preserving "The World","the voice said before Coinchii suddenly dive-bombed towards Dusk.

Dusk unleashed a sword-shock wave through the air, but the bench blade cut right through it. The speed was amazing. It was hard to guess Coinchii's hight, but the dive-bomb occured within the blink of an eye. The fact Dusk managed to react to it was impressive on it's own. Jugatsu continued to watch the fight. Even he felt outmatched by what he was watching as Coinchii vanished only to appear behind Dusk at the same time and land a hit that would send Dusk flying. Dusk teleported and used the force from the attack to add to his. He shot out of the teleportation towards Coinchii who stopped both the Twilight Swords and Dusk in one slash of his own. Dusk landed on the ground slashing rapidly at Coinchii who was blocking with skill that was easily a few classes above Jugatsu's. Coinchii took a quick step back and slashed upwards, missing Dusk, but a light emerged from the ground and engulfed Dusk. It didn't look as if the light was solid, but it certainly caused damage to Dusk who flew up in the air in time to warrant another attack from Coinchii. Dusk managed to block the first hit with little problem, but the next block was difficult for him. He wasn't able to block the third attack which hit Dusk downwards, sending him hurdling to the planet. That bench, despite being blade-class weapon from the looks of it was more of a blunt weapon in the way it was being used.

"Why isn't my psychic grip working?"Dusk asked, holding the swords to shield himself from Coinchii's attacks.

The defense proved to be useless when Coinchii appeared behind him, hitting him once again from behind.

"Your psychic grip can only work on a living thing. The cathedral has a mind, and obviously has awareness, but all in all it's just an area, which is why it can't be stopped by your psychic powers,"Jugatsu said to himself.

His weapons lie next to his feet for quite awhile, Jugatsu not noticing he dropped them. Dusk screamed while spinning as he flew from the next attack. He soon became covered in red energy and unleashed several balls of energy in every direction. Jugatsu managed to dodge the few that went towards him, but Coinchii just slashed through the air with the bench sword and the power from the attack reversed the direction of the energy balls. Everything Dusk tried was turning out to be useless. The power he gained from the bracelet must not have been a joke however since, despite all the blows he was taking he was still for the most part able to battle.

"Jugatsu, now, grant me power through your bracelet,"the voice called out.

Jugatsu blinked, and aimed his bracelet at Coinchii. Coinchii quickly vanished and hit Dusk from a different angle.

"Focus,"Jugatsu said closing his eyes.

Jugatsu began to gather energy within his bracelet and created an imaginary link between Coinchii and his bracelet. Using the imaginary link he began to transfer the power. He finally stopped when he grew tired, opening his eyes. He saw Dusk get knocked into the ground, a crater left from the impact. Almost at the same time as Dusk's impact Coinchii appeared, his body was casting off a visible golden aura. Jugatsu felt relief from the fact he managed to make the energy transfer work, but at the same time he didn't really didn't notice because of the tense feeling he was getting from just watching the fight. The bench sword caught on fire from the energy. Coinchii gathered all of the energy he was given from Jugatsu and powered up the bench sword. The golden flame joined in the attack as the bench sword was thrust down, a large phoenix appearing at the moment of impact.

The phoenix faded away, leaving Coinchii standing above the crater and red energy disappearing into the air from within the crater. Jugatsu grabbed his weapons and ran up to the crater. Dusk had been defeated, his body was slowly being absorbed into the air. At the same time the barrier in the sky vanished.

"Coinchii, you,"Jugatsu began, turning to Coinchii.

Jugatsu was surprised. He expected the Hulle Granz Cathedral Coinchii, but instead Coinchii was back to normal, passed out, laying on his back.

"Jugatsu, I'm warping everyone to the Deletion Zone, good job. Make sure you grab the swords within the next five minutes,"Code's voice said.

"It wasn't me who did a good job,"Jugatsu said, looking indirectly at the cathedral by looking at Coinchii.

* * *

Reviews, comments, etc. always welcome. With this out of the way, there are only three chapters of AIC remaining. Stay tuned...or something like that and look forward to what remains of an almost 250 computer page story. (It's like reading a novel! Only free and illegal to profit off of.) 


	40. Chapter 40:Success

And with this the story is basically finished, however, two more chapters still follow so don't think it's completely over. Enjoy.

* * *

Twilight was gone, the minion AIs had been defeated. The following day was hectic as last minute reports were coming. Information that was building up for the the three months, almost four months, were now being turned in. Everything had to be sorted, and the contents had to be organized. Despite Kaiyen's help, Code was still busy the entire time. Ryo and Sakura hadn't been able to get close enough to ask about what they were going to be doing. With the AIs defeated, there wasn't any reason for the two of them to remain in the institute. They spent the rest of the day having a celebration between the two of them, but today they wanted to talk to Code.

"Well for the most part everything has been sorted out. I'm sure I can convince him to talk to you today,"Data said to Ryo in his room.

"Thanks. It's not that I don't like being here or anything, it's just..."

"I understand. There are people waiting for you to return, and despite what you have here, it's not a place where you'll be able to do anything more."

"Yeah,"Ryo replied, glad Data understood him.

Data vanished from the doorway, leaving Ryo and Sakura alone.

"You do know you still haven't finished packing,"Sakura commented casually.

"I know,"Ryo replied in a half in complaining tone.

"It's not like you've been busy with the others. Even I've finished packing,"Sakura added.

"Stop picking on me."

Ryo stood up and began gathering the rest of his belongings. All of the major things had already been packed, all he had left to gather were the minor additions he brought with him. Those things were finished fairly quickly and with the packing officially done, Ryo went to the last object he would return home with. The Skyld plushie he had grown attached to was grabbed from beneath the TV in his room and was placed on top of his luggage.

He finished in time, as Data knocked once again on his door. Code was ready to see him. Two people, Ryo was unsure of which phase they were from, walked in and got his luggage for him. Once in the hallway Sakura was greeted with her luggage as well. They continued towards the front of the institute where Code and Orai stood.

"You've gotten better,"Ryo said.

Ever since the quad C invasion, Orai was place in a coma, but because of the situation he couldn't go to a normal hospital. Luckily the institute was well equipped and Orai was able to be taken care of within the institute. Ryo suddenly felt guilty for never visiting Orai. In fact the the thought never crossed his mind. It wasn't something worth mentioning, however.

Orai casually nodded to Ryo in response.

"So this is goodbye, Ryo Kuinichi and Sakura Ominari,"Code stated, a smile, sullen in expression, on his face.

"Code, I-"Ryo began to say, but was cut-off by Code.

"I doubt we'll meet again. It'd probably be best to forget about me. There is, however, one thing I would like you to remember, should you manage to forget about me...My status amongst the world is that of a 'notorious hacker'. Without my identity the cops can't openly create charges against me, but as it is now if they were able to put out charges, I'd probably be tracked down...not that they'll ever be able to find me. Anyways, the thing I want to remember is, when you met me, you didn't think of me as a bad person. I appreciate that."

"Code..."Ryo started, unable to think of anything in response.

"That's all? I expected something more interesting, like his real name,"Sakura replied, grinning.

"Sakura!"

"What, Ryo? I'm just kidding,"she stated, hugging him.

"Well, I doubt I'll be able to forget anything from these last four months. It's been...well I can't say fun...it's been exciting though,"Ryo replied.

Code chuckled and began to walk away.

"Bye, Code!"Sakura shouted.

Code casually brought his hand up and waved, not turning around and vanishing. This would probably be the last time Ryo would ever see Code. It was almost sad, he thought of Code as a friend really, at times too pushy, but all in all he was like a friend. Somehow, despite that hint of sadness, Ryo was happy.

"Let's go, Kaiyen will be driving you home. This is more than likely the last time you'll see me. Despite the little amount of contact we've actually had with each other, I'm sure I'll never forget you...It's probably the same with everyone here,"Data said as he led them through the front entrance to a larger than normal truck.

"The feeling is mutual, bye Data,"Ryo responded.

Their luggage was placed by the other four people in the back of the truck, tied down and covered by a series of sliding plastic boards. The bed of the truck was completely sealed and Data returned inside, the other four following him. Ryo and Sakura got in the backseat of the truck and found Kaiyen in the front.

The ride was silent, and before long the truck began approaching their neighborhood. Kaiyen stopped the truck in front of the park, pulling over to the side of the road.

"Before I drop you two off, I wanted to give you guys a proper good bye, and there's something both important and unimportant to tell you,"Kaiyen began.

"You always did remind me of a big brother. A better one than I am anyways,"Ryo replied.

"It was fun having you two around. Before you guys appeared to help with the case behind those AIs, everything was getting boring. It's like when you attend school, mindlessly going everyday to learn. A few things about it here and there you're interested in, but for the most part everything blending together as an education. Despite the events that unfolded, with you guys there everything seemed to pick up. Hopefully it remains like that even after I leave."

"After you leave, why? What are you doing?"Ryo asked surprised.

"Huh? Nothing that important. Have you forgotten? The reason you never saw any of Code's apprentices, is because none of them work within the institute. Once a person becomes an apprentice he's given the means to start a team, although I have to rethink who I choose with you two being gone, and they head out to do their own work, periodically sending reports back to Code who evaluates their progress,"Kaiyen explained.

"Oh, I thought it was something worse,"Ryo stated, nervous.

"Anyways, about that other thing. Also while you were there Code's attitude seemed to have soften. Before you guys arrived, he saw everyone as working to become an apprentice and few people actually earned a place in his eye. To him, everyone else was just another student, or was one of the few apprentices. The main reason he's better now is because of you, Ryo. Code always used to stay to himself, but when you became his friend he began to let himself open up more, which is a good thing. Before this incident, Code rarely got angry or happy over anything. Sure he still had his emotions and was able to become aggravated and feel relieved, but his emotions were never completely released. I'm sure he's going to be sad that you're leaving, and I'm not trying to get you to have second thoughts about leaving. I just wanted you to know this,"Kaiyen said.

He began driving once again to drop them off at their houses. Ryo was sure an excuse would be given as to why they returned home, thanks to Code, but in the meantime, Ryo just felt like absorbing the moment. Something like this would normally be impossible. An event like this would probably happen less than once a millinium normally. This would forever remain as one of Ryo's most treasured memories.

----------

"By this point everything's been organized. You can go over it whenever you see it fit,"Data said to Code as the returned to the computer room.

"Alright..."Code said, his attention not completely in his work.

"If it's about Ryo leaving, everyone feels the same way. If you don't feel like doing anything at the moment, I'm sure no one would blame you,"Data offered.

"No, it's okay. Despite what has happened, the work revolving around this incident hasn't been resolved. There are a few more things we have to do. The most important thing remaining I'll have to take care of as soon as possible,"Code stated, sitting down.

"You're referring to Jugatsu and Zero?"

"Yeah, I promised them they could use the Twilight Swords and escape. Jugatsu is holding them at the moment. He even used his bracelet to combine them. The system thinks of them as daggers now. It's scary just thinking about how much power he wields within "The World" at the moment,"Code joked.

Code began searching for traces of their location. In a matter of seconds he found both of them located at the dead-end in Mac Anu.

"Sorry about the wait, I've been busy in the real world with the aftermath of the incident, I haven't forgotten about my end of the bargain. However there are a few things I must do before you can appear within the real world,"Code said.

"I never said you were wrong, I'm just impatient about leaving,"Zero said in response to a chuckle from Jugatsu.

"I figured that much already. As far as existing goes, in the real world neither of us would exist. We need identities, and a history created in order to allow us to live naturally, correct?"

"Amongst other things, yeah. It'll be pretty time consuming, but at the moment it's one of my top priorities. I have to apologize for the wait in advance."

"Well I suppose I can wait, I've been in here so long, although I'm anxious it won't kill me, so about how long will we have to wait?"Zero asked.

"I'm not entirely sure myself, this is the first time I've done anything like this. It'll be hard, hacking into several well-guarded places to make you guys exist. I have to create birth records, school records, information will have to be added to the computers storing the goverment's information, amongst various other things. I want to say a month should be enough time if nothing goes wrong,"Code estimated.

"Alright, if we only have to wait a month, I have no problem with that,"Jugatsu said, rubbing his hand on the pommel of the Twilight Sword.

"Do you even know how to use the ability to get us out of here?"Zero asked, afterwards.

"Unlike the AIs, I can probably access the information on the sword and give instructions,"Code stated.

"No need. I can feel their energy. When the time comes I'll be able to do it. As soon as I grabbed the swords during our escape it's like they wanted me to know. The information just flew into my head. The truth is the swords themselves are the doors. The Tasogare's body makes the door when the Twilight Sword merges with it. The reason Twilight couldn't merge the swords is probably because Dawn put a restriction on her body that prevented her from combining the swords. How she would be able to do that, I don't know,"Jugatsu stated.

Code's voice stopped, leaving Jugatsu and Zero in the dead end.

"I'm going to kill some energy,"Zero said, standing up and walking away.

Jugatsu chuckled and warped to the top of the building that laid behind the Chaos Gate. The skies were back to normal now, giving Jugatsu an excellent view.

_I can't help but feel if I was responsible for everything that's happened this time...Everything's ended well so I suppose it doesn't matter, but if I was able to actually kill Dusk back then...that reminds me...I was pretty surprised by his method of assuring that Dusk wouldn't be able to revive..._

"What's going to happen now?"Jugatsu asked, having warped everyone out once the barrier vanished.

"Are you sure everyone's accounted for?"Code asked, not yet answering.

"Yeah, I have everyone,"Jugatsu answered.

"Okay. Now that no one is on the field I can continue. Dusk will definitely come back if we just leave that place as it is. However, with Dusk's body currently destroyed, yet his existence still within the map, we can scan through the data. The key to defeating Dusk is to make sure, even if he comes back, he can't do anything. To do that I'm currently transferring all the data of the map to a CD. His essence or body, whichever appears first won't be able to reappear anywhere other than where his body was destroyed. That was the conclusion I came to. If the place he was destroyed at is now in a CD, he'll resurrect in time on the CD as well, but being on a CD nothing will happen to him. I'm saving this as a treat for you. Whenever you're free of that world, you get to have the honors of breaking and burning this CD, destroying Dusk forever."

Jugatsu chuckled at the thought. _It's exactly because of that reason I can endure this wait. He's my enemy in the end, it's only fitting I get to truly finish him off...Thanks everyone._

----------

"You're sure of this?"Code asked, upon Kaiyen's statement of leaving.

"Yeah, until I leave and begin to work on my own I can't really be an apprentice, right?"

"True, you were a good student, but now that you're an apprentice I expect more of you,"Code said.

"The irony...normally that's something an older person would say,"Data responded casually from the sidelines.

"It's something you should want Code to say to you,"Kaiyen defended.

"Age is meaningless when it comes to information, if I recall it's one of the statements I have in the book I hand to all new students,"Code said.

"Yeah, but it still doesn't change the irony of this situation,"Data responded.

"If you two are done...I have a meeting with Azara and Momiri. Let me know when you're going to leave, I want to see you off properly,"Code said to Orion.

Code turned back to his computer and put the headset on. After typing on various keys, Code pinpointed where Momiri and Azara's characters were 'entered' about as much as he usually did. It was an obvious meeting with the only real goal of declaring the incident as officially finished. Unlike others Code didn't really have a relationship with Momiri or Azara that was suited for a 'good-bye'. This relationship was strictly business.

"Sorry if I made you wait,"Code began.

"We weren't waiting long at all,"Azara replied pleasantly.  
"I had all the players evacuate the map for safety reasons, I hope deleting the account copies and Orion's account won't be too much of a hassle,"Code stated.

"It won't take long at all, but more importantly, we've won, correct?"Azara asked.

"Yes, we've rid "The World" of any AIs, and the map should no longer exist on the server either. As for the Deletion Zone, I did my best, but it appears it'll have to remain with "The World". Is that too much of a problem?"

"As long as the AIs are gone, the Deletion Zone shouldn't prove to be much of a problem, I don't have any problem with leaving it as it is."

"Very well, I suppose with this out of the way, our business is through. It was nice working with you CC Corp,"Code said.

"Like wise, legendary hacker, Code. No further contact will be attempted on this half. As well as the Quad C alliance. From here on out it's nullified,"Azara issued.

"Naturally. Well, if you have nothing to say I suppose this meeting is finished?"Code asked.

"I have nothing to say, but Momiri-"Azara said, stopping.

"Ah, well, it's not much, but I just wanted to thank you for your help, Code. Without you we couldn't have done it,"Momiri stated, happily.

"It was nothing, will that be all?"Code asked once again.

"That would be all,"Azara answered.

Code cut the connection, hit a few keys and took a deep breath.

----------

"It's been roughly four years since this kind of event has happened, but I'm standing here now in front of a local hospital where numerous patients have recovered at the same moment from a coma. Four years ago, 15 people were in a comatose state. The cause was believed to be from playing "The World". Just like what occurred earlier today, all of them awoke from their coma at the same exact time. There was one casualty though, a boy named Kaishen Suichiami who had, unfortunately, died at the same time. According to reports however, the number of comatose in this area is over 30, and all have recovered.

"Some people have been calling this a second miracle. Most of the recovered comatose patients are being released, however, there are several who have damage on their body which was associated with the coma. The patients with more severe injuries are still being kept within the hospital until the injuries have recovered,"a news reporter stated in front of a camera.

The news reporter stopped one of the patients as he came out of the hospital. After some soundless words were exchanged the camera zoomed in as the news reporter looked back.

"This is one of the patients, Curai Okuami. He's decided he's willing to speak of his experiences,"the news reporter stated, shifting her microphone to Curai's mouth.

"Well, I suppose I was one of the lucky people. I was only in a coma for about half a week, before everyone recovered,"he said.

"Do you remember what you were doing when it happened?"the news reporter asked eagerly.

"Well, to be honest, like a lot of the other patients, I was playing "The World". I was with my girlfriend, she's my real life girlfriend, not just in-game, just so you don't think I'm pathe-"  
"Please, continue,"the news reporter, interrupted with a sweatdrop.

"Sorry, anyways, I was with her and we in a field when we were fighting a monster, after that, everything just went kinda of hazy. My girlfriend was released earlier so, I'm probably going to call her and meet up later,"Curai stated.

"Your love life doesn't make good footage, no offense,"the news reporter reasoned, starting to regret her choice.

"Fine, fine, any other questions, then?"Curai asked.

"Oh, well, what was it like being in a coma? For those who haven't the slightest idea,"the news reporter asked, eager once again.

"It's hard to describe...it's like...you cease to exist. I suppose the closest I could get to describing it would be like, stealing all five senses from someone. They wouldn't see darkness or anything, you wouldn't be able to hear anything, but it's not really silence either. I suppose it's like an absence of sound. Naturally you can't feel anything or move, there are no smells. And without all of your senses, the only thing that you can still feel is the passing of time. It's like being trapped within nothingness. It's really unpleasant,"Curai answered.

"Thanks for your time, check the news tonight, if the footage looks good, you might see this clip later tonight. With editing of course,"the news reporter confessed.

"Wasn't a problem. I'll watch it with my girlfriend,"Curai said.

"You must really love your girlfriend,"the news reporter replied with a sweatdrop.

"We've been through a lot,"Curai confessed.

"I have to go find more people to interview, thanks for your time,"the news reporter said, half walking and half running away to avoid a conversation with Curai.

"What's her problem?"Curai asked himself, walking away as well.

_The last time I saw my girlfriend she was on Gyuni. It's unavoidable but kind of sad. I'm still wondering where the hell Twilight came from anyways. I suppose our being out of a coma though, means Coinchii and whoever else managed to defeat Twilight...Good job, guys._

* * *

Reviews and such welcome. Not much to really say in these author's notes. Look forward to the next two chapters. (not at once of course) 


	41. Chapter 41:Code's Reports

It's been about a week since I've last update, this time you get two reports revolving around further insight into the origin's of things such as the AIs, and theory's around the mysterious Cathedral. Also, for those people wondering why certain aspects "The World" conflicted with the story of "The World" it's clarified. Not much to say, one more chapter left to release and it's the end, enjoy.

* * *

**Report #3-1-21-19-5A**

**Date:**XX-XX-XXXX  
**Topic:**Origin of Twilight, Dusk, and Dawn

**Author:**Code

The topic being addressed in this report is different than the usual reports concerning the incident Artificial Intelligence Catastrophe. (From this point forward, Artificial Intelligence Catastrophe will addressed as AIC) Previous reports I've written involve various forms of explanations and theories behind the capabilities of the Artificial Intelligence (From the point forward, Artificial Intelligence will be addressed as AI) known as AI 3 (From this point forward, AI 3 will be addressed as Twilight. While I have understood the origin of Twilight for quite awhile, I have not yet written it within any reports involving the incident. This is, for the most part, because I was missing information that was vital to the origin as a whole.

X Twilight's Appearance X

Twilight's birth results from the incident stated in report #5-14-4P. After Player A's (Name withheld for the sake of privacy) actions and the assumed destruction of the AIs, Twilight was born. The existence of Twilight remained unknown for four years, three months, and two days, before the first rumored sighting occurred. It wasn't until two weeks and three days later this was confirmed. At the time, however, the name Twilight was not given to the AI.

X Twilight's Birth X

The AIs mentioned within report #5-14-4P upon Player A's actions were indeed vanquished, but not in the desired way. The defeat of AI 1(From this point forward, AI 1 will be addressed as Dawn) and AI 2 (From this point forward, AI 2 will be addressed as Dusk) were both 'absorbed' through the action of Player A. As stated in report #5-14-4P, Player A then proceeded to 'absorb' the rest of the surroundings, creating a new location, which was addressed in report #2-1-19-5DZ. Twilight, it is pure theory at this point, started off without existence, but as the new location began to gradually grow through the trash of "The World", it is theorized that Twilight as well began to form a physical state gradually. The events between Twilight's creation and physical birth have yet, and will probably never, be discovered due to AIC ending. As a result, the theory of Twilight's physical birth cannot be confirmed and will remain a theory.

While it could be assumed from the above text that Twilight is a combination of both Dusk and Dawn, I feel I should I write it out in text to make the report more 'solid'. The few who have seen Dusk and Dawn in person were able to notice from her first appearance that Twilight was Dawn in appearance, with striking traits from Dusk, such as the AIs mind and and color. Dawn's body was probably better intact from the actions in report #5-14-4P, which is why I believe that Dawn's body was the main body used. Also according to the actions in report #5-14-4P, Dusk attempted to take control of Dawn through his essence. This is why I believe that together, the AIs that were defeated were still the equivalent of one AI, and as a result able to survive in the aftermath.

While it indirectly is associated with this topic, I also I feel I must write out the simple fact that, within Dawn's body was a limiter placed to prevent her from using the Twilight Swords. Due to Dusk's mind being within Dawn's body, the limiter carried over into Twilight which is why Twilight was unable to use the power of the Twilight Swords initially. However, that's also what granted us such the generous amount of time we had to resolve the situation.

X Dawn X

During the previous incident that was summarized in report #19-20-1-18-20P, and then later was further explained to the best of my abilities with my limited knowledge, two AIs existed. Dawn and Dusk. These AIs were the original forms of Twilight. Good and evil were expressed clearly by both of these AIs. Dawn was reported as the 'kinder' and 'gentler' AI. Also, according to sources which wished to remain private, Dawn's only intention was to prevent Dusk from acquiring the Twilight Swords.

X Dusk X

Contrary to Dawn's 'good AI' status, Dusk was considered the 'evil AI'. According to report #4-5-1-20-8C, players who are suffer severe injuries and 'die' go into a coma in the real world. The same case applied during the incident caused by Dusk. The coma count was significantly lower due to the shorter time frame of the past incident. During Dusk's time, Dusk was destructive and was responsible for every coma that occurred.

X Dusk and Dawn's Births X

It is because of this section I was reluctant to write a report on Twilight's origin. The creation of Dusk and Dawn was never known during AIC, however, it wasn't until afterwards the answer became clear through its own means. The birth of Dawn and Dusk can be considered the prelude of AIC in way, if it wasn't for their incident, AIC would not have occurred.

Unfortunately, before I can explain the birth of Dawn and Dusk I must return even farther back, way before the incident involving Dawn and Dusk. The .hack// Project was the name of a popular franchise of games. It is through the .hack// franchise that "The World" came to exist. Back then it was just a normal game franchise with original concept...Well original at the time. It was a role playing game (More commonly known as, and from here on referred to as, an RPG) with the idea of a simulated massively multiplayer online game (More commonly known as, and from here on referred to as, and MMORPG) . The MMORPG within the game was called "The World", and yes, "The World" is based off of the MMORPG within the RPG. During the storyline of the overall franchise, the original version of "The World" was ended after a few destroyed the servers hosting "The World". From there "The World R:2" was created. The popular MMORPG "The World" that's played today, was based off of the original MMORPG from before the fire that took place within the storyline. Some aspects of future versions of "The World" were included in "The World", however. Due to irrelevancy the rest of the storyline will not explained,

The main reason I find myself explaining "The World"'s origin is because of basic idea of the various plots that occurred through the first version of "The World" within the storyline. Half of the plots centered around various forms of AIs that existed within "The World", one of the most popular and reoccurring ones being known as Aura. Aura's appearance which matches that of Dawn's should have been a clear hint that something was wrong. I still find myself amazed that no one picked up on it until the answer revealed itself.

Shortly after AIC, an employee within CC Corp was confronted. His job was at stake because of claims saying he had tampered with the computers that hosted "The World". The man was 58, during the time the .hack// Project began he would've been roughly 11 or 12 year olds. Old enough to follow the franchise it ended to begin work on the enormous project of making "The World" a reality. This information alone should make it obvious, but in case it still isn't clear, here's additional information. After looking through the man's history, (It was a request by the previous game administrator, who, after the previous incident, became the head of CC Corp's section that ran "The World") he had been interested in a lot of computer aspects. From robotic AI, to computer programing. He was particularly skilled in the creation of programs and graphics design.

This man was responsible for the incidents that followed after "The World" had successfully been established and settled into its fame. The timing had to be perfect in order for it to follow the man's wishes. If he began his work too early, then it would've resulted in "The World" shutting down and his work would've gone out without a bang. When millions are playing, and the company was making a good source of income would be the time to act. If it would be harmful to the company, the chance of shutting down was low, and if millions of people played, the odds of the government intervening would also be low. This is when he made his move.

All of the work this had done in life was finally realized when he executed his plan. This man was responsible for the creation and release of Dusk and Dawn. According to the records I looked into, the man was legally sane, but he endangered the lives of millions in order to relive the fantasy he explored through the .hack// RPG franchise. This time however, it's wasn't an RPG, but something that was considered a weapon. Nobody questioned whether he should get the life sentence or not. There was only one situation in where he could be called a murderer.

My mind is starting to slip, however. It's beginning to sound as if I'm writing the ending to a mystery story, when I was merely trying to explain the situation that led to the origin's of Dusk and Dawn. Report...End  
**Time to write the report**1 hour, 55 minutes.

* * *

**Report #3-1-21-19-5J**

**Date:**XX-XX-XXXX  
**Topic:**Hulle Granz Cathedral Theory

**Author:**Code

The content of this report is fairly straightforward. As stated in the Topic, it revolves around the cathedral at Delta, Hidden Forbidden Holy Ground. During the .hack// Franchise (For a complete overview, please check into report #8-1-3-11H) Delta, Hidden Forbidden Holy Ground was constant landmark throughout the franchise. Even after "The World" evolved through the new versions. Hulle Granz Cathedral, as it had it had come to be called, was in every version as an area that "couldn't be deleted". It's no surprise, now that "The World" has actually been created, it was of course within the game, however it appears to be, as within the franchise, there's more to Hulle Granz Cathedral than meets the eye.

X Past Activity Within Hulle Granz Cathedral X

Within "The World"''s history, Hulle Granz Cathedral appeared to be nothing more than a tourist's attraction for the players who were around during the .hack// Franchise. No past activity had ever been recorded until a small disturbance occurred within the last incident involving Player A (Name withheld for the sake of privacy). The event that unfolded for Player A was the same as the two events that occurred within AIC.

Originally, no statue was present until the first incident, and a blank pedestal was stationed neared the gate that divided the statue and the rest of the cathedral. It wasn't until the first incident a statue suddenly appeared. along with the statue writing appeared on the pedestal. This was the first sign of activity from within Hulle Granz during the extensive amount of years "The World" has been established.

A few years later, this is during AIC, Player B (Name withheld for the sake of privacy) triggered another change within Hulle Granz Cathedral. The changes were similar to the first incident of Hulle Granz. The statue changed its appearance and the text on the pedestal changed.

Not so long after, Player C (Name withheld for the sake of privacy) managed to trigged the event a third time. The day before the end of AIC, Player C returned to Hulle Granz Cathedral, probably to see if the event would occur once more, but instead the cathedral returned to its initial state. The statue vanished and the text was gone as well. Nothing revolving around Hulle Granz had occurred since, with the exception of the event that unfolded from within the final battle of AIC. (For more information on the final battle, please check into report #6-9-14-1-12B)

X Evidence of Theory X  
The evidence cannot be considered solid for two reasons. First off, the information came verbally from one witness. The only reinforcement of the witness is my trust, but in any official scientific standing, trust, alas, cannot call a theory fact. The second reason this does not count as proof is the fact, the event may of been caused, or have been centered around an outer factor. Due to the event only happening once, and only a witness' words, there is no chance to prove anything.

The testament was given to me by Player A and involved Player B. Notes were taken, but there was no recording. The summary goes: While fighting Dusk (AI 2), Xxxxxxxx (From here on will be known as Player B) suddenly 'transformed'. Once finished, Player B, resembled little of what he once was. (For a complete look at this testament, please check into report #20-1-12-11J) The appearance reminded me of Hulle Granz Cathedral. When he finally spoke, his mouth wasn't moving, and it was as if some holy force was speaking from nowhere and everywhere. His combat capabilities were frightening to watch. Dusk was completely outmatched.

The testament continues to explain the battle, but the battle doesn't count as evidence.

X Hulle Granz Cathedral Theory X

This theory, I must admit, was partially inspired by Player A's judgment. The cause of Dusk and Dawn's (AI 1) birth were cause of an employee within CC Corp who tampered with the computers and released Dusk and Dawn into "The World". He remained unnoticed and uncaptured until after AIC. (For more complete overview of the employee, refer to report #19-20-1-18-20E)

The bulk of the Theory is that Hulle Granz Cathedral became more than area...the term is still in the works at the moment, but it became known as an Area AI. An AI that was an area, obviously. It's believed that the employee that released Dawn and Dusk into "The World" also did something to Hulle Granz Cathedral, creating the area AI, or perhaps just replacing Hulle Granz Cathedral with the Area AI. As stated within the above text, the cathedral had no record of unusual activity before the release of the AIs. Even with the four statue events before the final battle of AIC, there wasn't anything that indicated an Area AI. The main pillar for this theory lays in what reportedly happened to Player B, the event in where Hulle Granz Cathedral 'possessed' Player B, turning his character into one that surpassed a system defying AI.

With nothing to provide solid evidence, and nothing to prove any other theories, this will probably remain forever as a theory and nothing more.

X Hole in Theory X

While this doesn't necessarily disprove the theory, its difficult to explain. The biggest hole in the theory revolves around the part involving the CC Corp employee's role. The theory states that while releasing Dawn and Dusk, he also tampered with Hulle Granz Cathedral.

The hole is that, records showed clear evidence of the employee making direct access and transferring data from a flash drive into "The World"'s computer. There was no evidence, however, of Hulle Granz being tampered with during that day, nor in in any days leading up to the first event of Hulle Granz Cathedral. As far as the server goes, the nearest interaction with it occurred four days before, during server maintenance. This wouldn't be altered with the introduction of the AIs, since they were set to appear randomly at anywhere within "The World" not within a specific server.

The counter to that hole lays in the integrity and ability put into the AIs released. My abilities with computers are rumored of through-out the world. Some stories talk of near impossible feats, I've supposedly accomplished, to certain activities I could do without thinking of it. Despite my skill, which still improves are at quite a decent rate, I was unable to scan the AIs.

This means that the employee had abilities that were astounding. He managed to encrypt the AIs' data, create various 'locks' to prohibit access, and then created an 'access-counter' on top of the other things he protected the AIs' data with. The access-counter consisted of a series of attacks that reacted against a computer attempting to scan through data that was somehow connected to the AIs. The first attack was a reverse tracker that would attempt to interrupt the computer's scan. Any decent computer would be able to bypass this, however. The second attack was a data scrambler, but not on the AIs, this distorted the data within the computer, making it very difficult to scan. When scanning, the computer needs access to several files for the various actions that occur within scanning. With the data being scrambled, it would continuously seek out the files. This would cancel the scan for most computers. The final attack of the 'access-counter' is a system shut-down. This forcefully cancels the scan by locking out all user actions and closing the computer's power routes, causing the system to go down.

I've spent a great deal of time talking about the AIs protections, and it would look like I was off track. This was, however, to enforce the fact, that someone of his skill would easily be able to rewrite the data and show it as if nothing had occurred to Hulle Granz Cathedral. It troubles me, though, that he would only erase the traces of his actions from Hulle Granz Cathedral and not from anything else. The rest of the traces he left within the computer were used as evidence and caused his fall within court. It would've made sense to erase all of his tracks and not just the Hulle Granz Cathedral tracks.

My final thought on this hole is that perhaps, from a psychological stand-point, he wanted people to acknowledge his talent and ability. Despite all the trouble caused, from the view point of anyone with knowledge in computers, the two AIs, Dusk and Dawn were beyond anything thought possible at this time. I myself, admit, I'm still puzzled as to how they were made, and am impressed. What, could've possibly been the perfect AI, capable of simulating a human's brain with near perfection was created. To get recognition for such a feat, despite the consequences of his actions, would be fairly far-fetched, but not so much that it would never happen. That remains as the only reason I can think behind not covering his tracks.

Report...End

**Time to write this report:**One hour, twenty minutes.

* * *

In case you're wondering what's with the report numbers. It's kinda simple. The number goes along with the letter in alphabet, 1A ,2B, 3C, and so on, The word that the numbers form belays the main idea of the report. The letter following the number stands for what the structure of the support is centered around. For example, report # 3-1-21-19-5A is C-A-U-S-E, or 'Cause' in other words. The A stands for AI. So the report is about the why the AIs exist. My proofreader had fun with it in the least, trying to figure out which each report was about. Anyways, I'm not sure when I'll get around to uploading the last chapter, but if anything I'll try to get it up before I return to school. Oh...reviews and what not are always welcome, of course. Until AIC's final release, see ya. 


	42. Chapter 42:Long Awaited Peace

Well, I'll save the semi-speech thing for the end of the story. Enjoy the last chapter of .hack//Artificial Intelligence Catastrophe

* * *

"I'm feeling kind of nostalgic today for some reason,"Suichi said randomly at lunch.

"How so?"Dylan replied, eating a sandwich he prepared that morning.

Ryo and Sakura as well were with them, sitting on their hill within school. It was an average day, warm, but not hot. School would be ending and with it their junior year of high school. The next year they would be seniors, and that meant their last year of grade school.

"I'm surprised the fangirls haven't done anything lately. In fact, I haven't seen them all this week,"Ryo said, taking a bite of his lunch, which Sakura had prepared.

"We have lunch like this everyday, why are you feeling nostalgic out of nowhere,"Sakura asked.

"Not entirely sure, it's relaxing though, just being able to lay here. Everything's more or less back to normal, everything's well in "The World","Suichi stated in an attempt to be poetic.

"Speaking of "The World". We haven't been left alone in awhile. Just because we hang out with Skyld and AnakinseZ everyone tries contacting us. Something about us not being famous, but having connections, or something,"Ryo complained.

"I suppose things like that happen naturally when you're the friends of the two biggest celebrities of "The World", right, Dylan?"Suichi said.

Dylan didn't reply.

"He fell asleep again. Despite his appearance he really is quite easy going,"Sakura commented.

"Oh, I know why!"Ryo shouted out of nowhere.

"Hm?"Suichi responded.

"You're feeling nostalgic because we're going to be seniors soon. Our last year of grade school. That must be it,"Ryo said, feeling confident about his guess.

"That, or someone is writing about our uneventful afterlife from that incident with "The World","Suichi casually replied, finishing his lunch.

"What?"Ryo replied, confused by the answer.

"Don't worry about it."

"Ryo never worries about anything,"Sakura stated, sticking her tounge out.

"Stop picking on me,"Ryo moaned.

Suichi chuckled and laid back, staring at the clouds. It really was relaxing nowadays.

----------

"There's never anything on TV, nowadays,"Ryo said.

The weekend was supposed to be a time for enjoyment. It was near the end of the school year, and even though work was less than normal, Ryo always looked forward to doing something. Today, however, his parents and little brother were out, leaving Ryo alone in the house with nothing to do. With exams near, as usual for every end of the school year, Ryo decided to limit the amount of time he spent on "The World". While he didn't study constantly, he decided it would be easier to prepare if he wasn't always playing "The World."

Ryo got bored of flipping through channels and tossed the remote on the chair. He stretched, laying on the couch, and decided he would watch whatever was on this channel. Not like he could find anything else, anyways.

"This is the 10 in the morning news."

Ryo was greeted by a news anchor man.

"Wonderful, I landed on the news channel,"Ryo complained, too lazy to go get the remote.

"For better or worse, the world-wide, infamous hacker known as Code, has been up to his old game."

"Code?"Ryo said aloud, sitting up.

"Hacking is usually considered a crime, but when getting hacked turns out to be a good thing, it baffles authorities as to how to respond. Several military bases were hacked within the last week, but instead of information being stolen or access being stolen, they were given several new computer programs. With the help of the new programs the military bases have managed to improve security and organization. In addition to those benefits, there was also financial advice which would help lower the amount of money spent towards managing a base without sacrificing performance.

"While hacking is considered a crime, especially hacking a military base, when the base benefits it makes authorities reluctant to count as a negative. In addition to all the of previously stated things, there was a note left by Code with the following on it. 'I'm seen as a bad guy, because of hacking. That was never my wish. I was merely trying to find answer for things I was curious about. I hope this can be just one small step towards improving my relationship with the world. -Code'.  
"As a result some are beginning to rethink their opinion on Code, but for others it'll take more to win their approval."

"Heh, that sounds like Code alright. Hacking into a military base is probably hard enough as it is, but to help them and leave a message without worrying about being caught. Code never ceases to amaze me,"Ryo said, chuckling slightly.

----------

"It's only a small game, but I decided since we haven't done anything in awhile it would be better than nothing,"Kiane said.

Ryo wasn't particularly a basketball person, but the excitement of being in the audience wasn't even comparable when placed next to watch a game at home. There was one player that caught Ryo's eye. He wasn't anything stand out, but the player interested Ryo.

"Naturally you'd notice him,"someone said, noticing Ryo was watching the player.

"What does that mean?"Ryo asked the person to his left.

"I'm a close friend of his. He's not only popular on the court. He also plays as Skyld in "The World","the person said, with his arms folded, watching with a small smile.

"Skyld! He's Skyld!? Ryo said surprised.

It didn't click until a few seconds afterwards.

"Close friend. That means your Anaki-"Ryo began to say.

He was interrupted by the person making a 'shh' motion.

"What's going on, Ryo?"Kiane asked from Ryo's right.

Ryo glanced at the person to his left then turned towards Kiane, dismissing it as nothing. He excused himself to the bathroom afterwards.

"Who would've thought that was Skyld I was watching. I was sitting next to AnakinseZ, in person! Why did I get the feeling he knew who I was though. Skyld and AnakinseZ have never seen me in real life,"Ryo said aloud in thought.

"Excuse me,"someone said, brushing past Ryo.

"Sorry,"Ryo apologized turning around.

The person had green hair that reminded Ryo of Zero. The outfit of course was different, and because Ryo didn't see his face he couldn't have been sure.

_It's true that Zero and Jugatsu did disappear. Was that Zero? _Ryo asked himself. He shook his head. AnakinseZ and Skyld were enough of a coincidence, there was no way it could've been him.

----------

"We never really got be alone last weekend. I was gone Saturday and you were at a baseball game with Kiane Sunday,"Sakura said as she and Ryo walked down a road in the city.

He promised her the entire day due to the lack of time they spent together last weekend. The morning consisted mostly of shopping. They were on their way to get lunch now. Luckily they found a food stand on the side of a building. Ryo had Sakura sit down while he ordered.

"Thanks,"the man in front of Ryo said.

"You know I could pay once in awhile, Curai,"said a girl, attached to his arm.

"You know that I said not to worry about it,"the man, being Curai replied to the woman gently.

"That man kind of looks like a real-life version of Cuoka, now that I think about it. Only with black hair instead of white hair. And that woman faintly reminds me of Cuoka's description of her.

"Curai...Cuoka...Even if it was them, it would be rude to interrupt them,"Ryo decided, turning to order his and Sakura's food.

----------

"Alright, brave warriors, now get ready. The second wave of goblins are coming. Remember, if you die you are prohibited from returning to the map, and the one who kills the goblin king at the end will get the title of Goblin Slayer! Fight hard!,"Venus shouted enthusiastically as a large number of goblins began spawning outside of the crowd of players.

Coinchii killed a few goblins that managed to break into the crowd. Characters were being killed left and right, but some of the stronger players were managing to hold back the mass of goblins. Teamwork sort of existed within the mob, but it was still a competitive event. Coinchii was suddenly confused when the goblins disappeared.

"Sorry, there seems to be a disturbance, after it's taken care of, the event will resume where it left off,"Venus's voice stated.

Coinchii looked over and saw some players swarming into a large circle. He managed to squeeze his way through and found two guilds staring each other down.

Ace suddenly warped into the middle of the two guilds.

"We represent the Elite Rogue Squadron. Guild fighting within fields is fine, however if an event is taking place, it's strictly prohibited, if you choose to continue your actions we will use force,"Ace commanded as Serene, Shadow, and Junhi appeared.

"Elite Rogue Squadron, they're just special players, kill them along with that other guild!"one of the guild masters shouted.

The two guilds ran towards each other, player after player falling before each of the ERS members. AnakinseZ did say something about an ERS member gradually gaining privileges as time went on, but even Coinchii was surprised by the strength of the now uniform-clad group of blademasters. The two guilds looks as if they collapsed on themselves, leaving a few reluctant players from the two guilds standing dumbfounded. Their characters were being warped away one by one as Ace began to address the normal players.

"Sorry for the interruption, everyone. These guild members will be punished for their actions, please resume the event without this bothering you."

----------

"I have horrible friends, just because I wake up late they expect me to get a bus to join them for something going on in the city,"Ryo complained, as the bus reached its stop.

Ryo sighed and walked out of the bus. He looked around and to gather where he was at when someone passed by him. He had spiky blond hair, and his eyes were covered beneath dark sunglasses. The clothes through him off for a second because he was wearing a black trench-coat over a white shirt and black pants.

"Jugatsu,"Ryo responded, suddenly.

He turned around to find the bus door closing with Jugatsu walking back towards his seat.

"Wait!"Ryo shouted running back towards the bus.

He was too late though. He wanted to speak with Jugatsu, but Jugatsu was riding away. It was tempting to chase the bus, but Ryo decided just knowing that Jugatsu was alright was fine by him. There was a lot Ryo wanted to ask him, none-the-less.

"I wonder if I'll run into him again?"Ryo asked himself.

He felt content inside as he continued his walk. Everyone from the incident seemed to be doing fine. Life was back to normal after all.

* * *

Well, it took shortly after a year to completely upload, a bit longer to work on the story. It came out to roughly 250 pages, and roughly 180,000 words. All in all, I can honestly say I've impressed myself with the amount of work I've managed to accomplish. I can also see visible improvement from the first chapters to the ending chapters. I still have plenty of room to improve on, and I hope to continue improving, be it a fanfiction or a completely original story, I hope those who've read AIC will continue to read my other works, continue to review (which draws in more readers), and to continue being awesome and leaving me with a 'x3' face with every review I see in my inbox.

And, of course with AIC done, I have to advertise my other story, Final Fantasy Backdoor. It doesn't really matter whether or not you've played Final Fantasy, or whether or not you know if it exists. People who have played will recognize some things they can relate to other Final Fantasies or things that have been reoccurring though-out the various games. It will be in the Final Fantasy VII section, because it has the most stories, probably the most hits, and is my favorite Final Fantasy, however I'm still unsure of when I'll begin to upload it, due to school, (Which started today) and other various things. Till we meet again. -Oh, and by the way, for an update of what's going on, I usually have a news bulletin sorta thing towards the lower half of my profile for any interested in what's going on as far as is involved anyways. If you don't feel like adding me as a favorite author or as an alert, you can just check into my profile page if your remotely interested and feel like looking into it.


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